


Go In Grace

by AliceInFlannel



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alpha Castiel (Supernatural), Alpha Castiel/Omega Dean Winchester, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Anal Sex, Anxiety, Bottom Dean Winchester, Canon-Typical Violence, Dubious Consent, Forced Feminization, Gentle Castiel (Supernatural), Hurt Dean Winchester, Hurt/Comfort, Knotting, M/M, Mpreg, Mysterious Castiel (Supernatural), Older Castiel (Supernatural), Omega Dean Winchester, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Rape/Non-con Elements, Rimming, Sex Slave Dean Winchester, Sexual Slavery, Slave Dean Winchester, Suicidal Thoughts, Supportive Castiel (Supernatural), Top Castiel (Supernatural), Top Castiel/Bottom Dean Winchester
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-15
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-06 17:48:30
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 10
Words: 50,636
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26472901
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AliceInFlannel/pseuds/AliceInFlannel
Summary: As pregnancy rates decline, the threat of extinction for mankind leads to the rise of a religious cult that takes over the United States to form an oppressive regime. This new world takes away all of omegas' rights and forces them to bear as many children as possible to keep humanity alive.Castiel and Dean are both forced to hide who they really are to survive in this new world. This is a story about two closed-off men who learn how to lean on each other to survive their awful circumstances.
Relationships: Castiel & Dean Winchester, Castiel/Dean Winchester
Comments: 53
Kudos: 129





	1. Ofal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a crossover between Supernatural and The Handmaid's Tale. I'm using a lot of plot points from the show, but adding in my own elements to shape it for the SPN characters and turn it into an A/B/O dystopian universe. Hope you enjoy it!
> 
> In case you haven't watched The Handmaid's Tale, I'm using the same naming method they use in the show. All fertile omegas receive a name when they enter a household: 'Of' and then their Alpha's name. So Ofal is Of-Al (Alistair). Ofmarv is Of-Marv, etc. It's another way to remind omegas that they don't have rights, and that they belong to whatever Alpha they're serving at the time.

The Impala raced along the lonely two lane highway in a desperate flight to make it out of the country. On one side the mountain rose above and out of sight. On the other side was a drop off that would lead to certain death. An omega sat in the passenger seat holding his pup in his lap while an Alpha drove the Impala way faster than the recommended speed. So far they’d gotten away from the vehicles pursuing them, but they could still hear the sirens behind them. They’d waited too long to try and escape.

The Impala took the next curve at seventy miles per hour, and they narrowly avoided flying off the edge of the cliff. The omega held on tighter to his pup and covered her eyes with his hands. If they could just make it across the border to Vancouver they’d be safe, but he wasn’t sure if they could make it. The Alpha could’ve escaped with her, but he refused to leave the omega behind. After all, the omega was the one they wanted.

Fertile male omegas are very rare and very valuable. Under this new regime, omegas have no rights. Their sole purpose is to bear pups to try and combat the rapidly decreasing population. They’d tried for a while to cover up the omega’s scent with blockers to make him appear to be a beta, but someone must’ve reported them. Once the authorities figured out the pup was his, that’s when they’d tried to make a run for it. Since the omega didn’t have an Alpha, in the eyes of the government he had no legal rights to have custody of his pup. His brother is an Alpha and for a while could claim custody since he’s the omega’s next of kin, but the law changed recently to get rid of that loophole. They should’ve left months ago before the entire country went to shit.

The Alpha took another sharp turn, but this time he hit a patch of ice on the road, and the Impala crashed into a tree. The Alpha threw the car into reverse, but it was stuck in the ditch. There was no way they were going to be able to get it out of there before the police caught up. The omega quickly got out of the car holding his pup in his arms while his brother ran to the trunk to grab the backpack with the only belongings they were able to bring with them.

The omega put his pup down on the ground and stooped down to get a look at her. She was holding her head and looked like she was about to cry. “Did you hit your head, baby?” He asked her and she nodded, tears welling up in her eyes. He gave her forehead a quick kiss. “I need you to be a big girl for me okay?” Her lip still quivered with her unshed tears, but he could see that fierce look come into her eyes that he knew so well. She’s such a strong pup for being only seven years old. “That’s my girl,” he said proudly and gave her another quick kiss.

“You need to take her,” his brother said, handing the backpack to him.

“No no no,” the omega said, shaking his head. He wasn’t about to just leave his brother there alone.

“You have to!” his brother yelled, using his Alpha voice. He felt his pup stiffen in his arms. Even though she knows that her uncle wouldn’t ever really hurt them, she must be scared to hear him use that voice. “The border should be only about two miles that way,” the Alpha pointed them in the right direction. “Someone is going to meet you there.”

“But what about you?” The omega asked, but his brother was busy leaning down to talk to his pup.

He held her small hands in his huge ones and looked her directly in the eyes. “I love you,” he gave her a quick kiss on the forehead. “Go with your dad now.” He handed her off to the omega. “I’ll be alright, just run, NOW!” He pushed them off towards the street and then ran to the back of the Impala.

The omega started moving on pure instinct. He needed to keep his pup safe. Nothing else mattered. He grabbed hold of her hand in one of his and held the backpack in his other as they raced into the woods on the opposite side of the street. The Canadian border shouldn’t be too far away from where they were. They could make it.

He heard the sirens getting closer and closer, but he didn’t look back and he never stopped running. He could tell that his pup was starting to slow down, but he urged her to keep moving. The sirens suddenly cut off, and he heard a brief exchange of gunfire. _His brother_. He gasped and turned around briefly, instinct urging him to help, but he knew there was nothing he could do. The two most important people in his life had been in that car with him, and now all he had left was his pup.

He clamped down on his emotions, knowing there would be plenty of time to deal with those later. He picked his pup up into his arms and started running with her again. They could still make it. The cold Washington air caused his breath to come out in plumes as he panted. He felt the stitch in his side start to slow him down, but he kept running.

Eventually it got to the point where he couldn’t physically run any further. His pup is a lot heavier than she used to be. He’s no slouch when it comes to the strength department, he’s much more muscular than the average omega, but it got to be too much. He quickly found a cluster of trees and bushes that they could hide inside.

“Come here, honey,” he whispered, holding his arms out for her to join him in his makeshift hiding spot. She stepped forward, and he pulled her in, sheltering her with his body. “You have to be very quiet.”

“Daddy?” She asked way too loudly.

He shushed her. “Be quiet, sweetheart.”

They waited in complete silence for what felt like ages. He heard the crunching of leaves underneath the officers’ feet as they got closer. He heard them calling out to each other, but thankfully his pup kept quiet. One of the officers got so close to the bush they were hiding in that the omega was able to smell him. He smelled like a beta, but he could have been an Alpha. He held his breath, praying that the officer would walk away.

“I don’t see him,” the officer said into his radio. His voice was way too close to them, and it made the omega jump. After another panic-inducing moment, the man finally walked away. The omega waited until he couldn’t hear his footsteps anymore to start running again. That little break gave him enough rest to start back up again.

He ran for about a minute more before his pup whispered, “Daddy, they’re coming!” The omega heard footsteps running behind him and angry voices yelling at him to stop.

His foot got caught on a tree root, and he fell. By the time he was able to get back up, the men were on him ripping his pup out of his arms. He did his best to hold onto her, but he couldn’t fight all of them. “Please don’t take her!” He begged them over and over again, but they didn’t listen. They were just faceless men in black uniforms, doing their jobs with absolutely no empathy.

He managed to kick one of the officers off of him, but another one caught him in the head with his nightstick, and he fell down. One more strike to the head was all it took to knock him unconscious. The last thing he heard was his pup screaming his name as they dragged her away.

~ * ~

The eastern light shines through the window as he waits in stillness for the morning bell to toll. He takes stock of his room as he often does because there’s nothing better to do. A window, a desk, a lamp, a chair, a bed. The window has pale blue curtains and is always unlocked, but it’s not escaping that they’re afraid of. An omega wouldn’t get very far. It’s the other escapes that they worry about. The ones you can carve into yourself with a sharp edge against your skin. Or a bottle of pills that are hard to swallow.

He tries not to think about those escapes. It’s harder on rutting day, but numbing out his brain makes it easier. His name is Ofal. He had another name once, but it’s against the law now. So many things are against the law now. He escapes into his memories while he waits for the bell to toll.

He remembers when he first got to this house, to his second Alpha. He was with the first one for only two months, but it didn’t work out. The old man could barely get it up. He sat down on the living room couch while Mistress Abbadon explained the rules. Most of them were the same as his old place, so he wasn’t concerned about struggling to follow them.

Mistress Abbadon was a wife, an Alpha wife. The wives of the important leaders of this fledgling nation tend to be Alphas and therefore, infertile. Each Alpha Commander gets one of the prize omegas. Male omegas are in especially high demand, and he heard through the rumor mill that this new Alpha is very high up on the chain of command. The omega planned on using that to any advantage he can.

He discreetly looked up at Mistress Abbadon when he knew she wasn’t looking. Whenever an omega has their blinders on, they’re supposed to look straight ahead or at the floor, but he wanted to know what she looked like. Her hair was bright red, and she was a lot younger than he’d been expecting. He wondered if that meant his new Alpha would be younger than his last one.

She smiled at him nervously. Maybe she was just as uncomfortable with this arrangement as he was. That was unlikely. “So Mister Whatshisname didn't work out?” She asked with a hint of a smile on her face.

“No, Mistress,” he answered with a small smile. He’d been trained to keep his voice light and feminine. Nobody wanted an omega with a deep masculine voice.

“This is your second Alpha then?” Mistress Abbadon asked in a way that showed she already knew the answer.

“Yes, Mistress,” he replied. Alphas prefer short, to-the-point responses. He looked up at her directly that time because when omegas are asked a direct question by an Alpha, they’re allowed to look them in the eye when they respond.

“Our last omega was brand new,” his Mistress explained, “It was like trying to break a horse.” She laughed quietly. “I’m sure you won’t be as difficult.”

He looked back down at the floor. “No, Mistress.” He said it sarcastically, but he hoped it wasn’t too apparent in his tone.

Abbadon took a step towards him, but then stopped. “Don’t call me ‘Mistress,’ you’re not a beta.” Betas were usually responsible for the menial tasks in this new world. They did the cooking and the cleaning, and Alphas gave them a place to sleep in return. Their roles weren’t good by any means, but at least they weren’t sex slaves.

The door to the living room opened then and in walked the Alpha. He tried his best not to look up from under his blinders, but he was dying of curiosity to see what his new Alpha would look like. The last one had been old and ugly, not to mention mean. He hoped that the new one would at least be tolerable. He didn’t think that was asking for too much.

He stood up in a sign of respect for his new Alpha, making sure to keep his eyes trained on the floor.

“You’re only five minutes late,” Mistress Abbadon said sarcastically. “This is the new omega.”

He heard the sound of footsteps slowly walking closer to him, but still he didn’t look up. He wasn’t going to mess things up on the first day of his new posting.

“Blessed be the womb,” the Alpha Commander said using their traditional greeting.

“May the Great Alpha make me fruitful,” he replied automatically. He looked up coyly from under his blinders and saw that his new Alpha had gray hair, but appeared to be younger than his previous Alpha. Hopefully he’ll at least be able to get an erection.

“I’m Commander Alistair,” the man said with a smile.

“Praised be to you,” he said, looking back down again. “I will… do my best to be worthy.” He fumbled the rest of the words in his script. He was a truly awful omega. He'd been told that many times.

Commander Alistair tried to hide his smile. “Well, good.” He started to leave. “Nice to meet you.”

“You too,” he replied reflexively, and both Mistress Abbadon and the Alpha turned to stare at him. He blinked rapidly and looked back down. Why couldn’t he just stick to the script and behave? He heard his new Alpha quietly exit the room, leaving him with Mistress Abbadon. After the door closed, he sat back down on the couch.

“Get up,” Mistress Abbadon said, and he stood back up. “I don’t want to ever see you unless it’s absolutely necessary, do you understand?”

He nodded, “Yes, Miss-“

“Yes, Mrs. Rolston,” Mistress Abbadon interrupted him. “He is my husband, until death do us part. Don’t get any ideas.”

He nodded in understanding, clenching his hands into fists to keep himself from speaking out of turn. He’d learned from prior experience that his mouth often gets him into trouble.

He’s interrupted from his daydreaming by the morning bell ringing. Time for the daily shopping. He changes out of his sleep clothes and into his regular clothes. It doesn’t take him long because he wears the same thing every day. Every omega does. His outfit consists of a red dress with a matching red overcoat for days when it’s cold outside. Since there aren’t many male omegas, nobody thought it was worthwhile to make him special clothes. He’s forced to wear the same dresses the female omegas wear. Plus male omegas are still supposed to act feminine. Alphas prefer them that way. A dress on his bulky frame looks almost comical, but the betas were trying their best to make him presentable. All fertile omegas wear bright red colors because it makes it obvious to everyone what their status is.

He slowly descends the back stairs and heads towards the kitchen. Mistress Abbadon has made it clear that he’s only to use the back stairs that betas use, not the main stairway. When he gets to the kitchen he sees Benny working at the stove. He’s the beta who works in their house. He’s pretty grumpy, but so far he’s been pleasant enough. A lot of betas are rude towards omegas, but Benny has treated him with respect. He's wearing his usual outfit of muted colors, always brown or khaki or gray. The dull colors signal that he’s a beta, unfit for mating or marriage. The omega watches from the doorway while Benny turns up the stove. He must be cooking the Rolstons’ breakfast.

Benny must sense him in the doorway because he turns around and rolls his eyes at him. “You always show up when I’m in the middle of something, cher,” Benny chuckles. “Be patient. Let me clean myself up.” Benny goes to clean up his workspace and wash his hands.

He hears a noise coming from outside and moves to see what’s happening while Benny finishes up. It’s the Commander and Mistress Abbadon having breakfast in the dining room. He hears the Commander tell his wife that he has to get to work, and she reminds him that it’s a rutting day. As if there’s any way he could forget. The Commander says he’ll be back in time and tells her to be patient. They’ll be rewarded with a child soon.

Benny moves to the door then, pulling his attention away from the Rolstons. “The Commander has been requesting baked goods recently. Make sure they’re fresh,” he wipes his hands on his apron. “If you let them know who it’s for, they’ll make sure to give you the newest batch.” Benny pulls a few coupons out of his apron and hands them to him before sending him on his way. “Now are you going to stand there all day? It’s rude to leave your friend waiting.”

He wants to tell Benny that his shopping partner, Ofmarv, is not his friend. That he’s exchanged barely five sentences with her in the week he’s been posted here. That he thinks she must've drank the Koolaid when she was trained in Purgatory because she's almost as pious as Aunt Naomi.

“Guided by His howl,” he says instead, using their traditional closing.

“Guided by His howl,” Benny repeats and goes back to his cooking.

He heads down the front steps and walks towards the driveway. He can see Ofmarv standing just outside the gate waiting for him. In between the two of them is the Commander’s driver, Castiel, who is fixing up a pothole in their driveway. There are bags of cement blocking the walkway where he needs to step, so he waits for Castiel to notice.

“Sorry,” Castiel apologizes in his gruff voice, reaching down to move the bags out of the way.

Castiel lives in a small guest house above the garage. He’s most likely a beta, or maybe a low-status Alpha. He can’t say for sure because all of the household staff are required to wear scent blockers. Either way, Castiel must be low-status because he hasn’t been given an omega yet.

“Are you going shopping?” Castiel asks him. That’s a stupid question. Where else would he be going?

“Yes,” he replies simply instead, using his annoying falsetto tone. He’s pretty sure Castiel, or anyone else for that matter, doesn’t know he’s a male omega. With the red dress on and his short hair covered up by his bonnet and blinders, there wouldn’t be any way for him to tell. Especially when he uses the high pitched voice he’s perfected.

“If you’re going to Food ‘N Stuff, you should avoid the chicken,” Castiel says, picking up his shovel to resume working. “I heard they got a bad batch the other day.”

“I’m going to Loaves and Fishes,” he replies, keeping his voice meek. His throat hurts having to constantly speak in this falsetto tone, but he’s finally gotten used to it. It was beat into him that nobody wants a masculine omega, and since he’s already on the tall side, he needs to make himself more feminine in any way he can. The only person who will be able to tell he’s a male omega is his Alpha Commander, and of course the other omegas he was trained in Purgatory with.

“Then you should definitely avoid the salmon,” Castiel says as he pats down the cement into the pothole.

“Why?”

“Because I don’t like salmon very much,” Castiel replies.

He raises his head to look past his blinders at Castiel and can see that the driver is shooting him a small smile. Castiel is very attractive. He’d have to be blind not to notice that. He has piercing blue eyes, and they aren’t afraid of holding eye contact with him even though that’s against the rules. He’s not supposed to look anyone directly in the eye unless they’re other omegas or unless his Alpha specifically requests him to.

He wonders why Castiel goes out of his way to interact with him. Even though he’s only been here a week Castiel has spoken with him a couple times, each time acting like they’re already friends. Maybe he’s lonely. _Maybe he’s watching me._ Maybe he’s a Guardian.

“Peace be with you,” he says and walks off, leaving Castiel to continue fixing up the driveway.

He heads over to the gate where Ofmarv has been waiting silently and patiently, just as an omega should. _Brainwashed little shit_.

“Blessed be the womb,” Ofmarv says when he steps through the gate and closes it behind him.

“May the Great Alpha make me fruitful,” he replies dutifully, taking one last look towards Castiel as he shovels.

“Ofal, are you alright?” Ofmarv asks since he doesn’t move right away.

“Yes,” he answers her as he joins her on the sidewalk. He can see that her blonde hair is barely contained below her bonnet and blinders. Female omegas have to wear their hair up and make sure it’s completely covered. That is one pro of being a male omega, his hair is easy to cover up.

The two of them take off on their way to the grocery store. Omegas are supposed to go everywhere in pairs. They’re told it’s for their protection and friendship, but that’s bullshit. They can’t afford to have any friends here. The truth is they’re watching each other to see if they break any rules. He’s her spy, and she’s his.

“The weather is very lovely today,” he says, searching desperately for something to fill the silence.

“It brings me great joy,” Ofmarv responds enthusiastically. He rolls his eyes since she can’t see him under his blinders. “I heard that the war is going well.”

“By His howl,” he replies. Of course in reality, he hopes the war would go badly. That maybe what’s left of the United States would be able to rise up and take back control of the nation. Maybe then their nightmare would end.

“We’ve defeated more of the rebels,” Ofmarv continues as they pass by the children’s school, but he’s stopped paying attention. Every day the children go out to play in the courtyard at the same time as the omegas are doing their shopping. Every day he looks for his pup in the crowd, but he never sees her.

“Ofal,” his walking partner breaks him out of his thoughts. “We should keep walking.” He nods, and they walk the rest of the way in silence.

The store is full of omegas and betas doing their shopping. As usual the doors and check-out stations are guarded by Guardians holding machine guns. He’s always wondered why that level of military force is required. Nobody would be stupid enough to try and start an uprising in the produce section.

“Hey!” Ofluke greets them, pushing a stray piece of dark brown hair back under her bonnet. “Did you see they have peaches?” Her real name is Meg. He knows that because the two of them were in Purgatory at the same time. Of course, he’s not allowed to use her real name anymore. Just like she’s not allowed to use his.

“The fighting in Georgia must be going well,” Ofmarv replies dutifully. “Your Mistress likes peaches,” she turns towards him. _How does she know that?_

“You should buy some for her,” Meg's walking partner says. He thinks her name is Ofuriel, but he doesn’t know her real name. “But make sure she knows it was from you. Don’t let their beta take the credit.”

“I don’t have a coupon for peaches,” he replies.

“Tell them you’re Commander Alistair’s,” Meg replies. “He’s a really high rank! His name is in the news.” All three of them turn to stare at her, and she quickly shuts her mouth, realizing that she fucked up. “I wasn’t reading it, I promise.” The other three omegas look at her for a second longer but then continue their shopping as if nothing happened.

It is explicitly forbidden for omegas to read. Of course the reason behind that is because knowledge is power. In every oppressive society throughout history, the lower classes were either forbidden to read or not educated enough to read. Now that this regime has taken formerly educated and productive members of society and reduced them to their biological functions, the government has to forbid them from reading or listening to news in order to keep them docile. It’s all about control.

Commander Alistair is apparently high up in the rank of commanders. That’s the second time he’s heard that, and it’s information that he’ll file away for later. It could end up being useful. He wishes he could thank Meg for her slip-up, but he doesn’t want to draw more attention to it. She’s already blushing tomato red.

They head over to the display of peaches in the center of the store and the three omegas begin filling up their bags with fresh fruit. He stands by the display staring blankly at the peaches in front of him. It hasn’t escaped his notice that he’s the only male in the store apart from the Guardians. For about the millionth time he hates himself for his designation. Why couldn’t he have been born an Alpha like his brother? His chest hurts when he thinks of him.

“Praise be His generosity,” Ofmarv gushes, turning her brown eyes towards his with a big smile on her face. “Take some! Before all the fresh ones are gone.”

He reaches out his hand automatically and begins filling up his bag with the fruit. He doesn’t want peaches. He wants to scream at the top of his lungs. He wants to grab the nearest machine gun and die in a hailstorm of bullets.

“Should we walk home by the river?” Ofmarv asks once they’re finished shopping.

“That would be nice,” he replies in that annoying falsetto. He’s beginning to forget what his real voice sounds like. He wonders if one day he’ll forget his real name.

They walk down the steps towards the river that flows through the middle of town. Hearing the water lap up against the sides is calming to his nerves. There’s also a nice breeze through here that plays with the wisps of blonde hair beneath Ofmarv’s bonnet. He wishes he could feel the breeze through his own hair, but it’s completely hidden by his own bonnet.

There are fewer prying eyes down here which is another reason he likes walking home this way. Even though he doesn’t really talk to his walking partner, it’s nice to simply have time to think without having to worry about people watching him and waiting for him to fuck up. The downside of walking along the river is that they have to pass by the wall where bodies are hung as a warning to everyone. There are lots of ways to end up on the wall. It doesn’t take much. Today it looks like there’s a doctor, a gay man, and a sex worker hanging. From the smell, it seems like they’ve been there a few days at least.

The doctor probably ended up on the wall for performing abortions. That’s illegal now given the shortage of pups being born. The reasons for the other two are obvious: sex in this society is only reserved for procreation. Gay sex is considered to be an abomination, but there are exceptions in the case of fertile male omegas such as himself. Sex work is obviously forbidden for the same reason. According to the commanders in charge, the only sex that should take place is between Alphas and omegas for the sake of procreation.

He closes his eyes and numbs himself out again to escape the harsh realities of this new world.

~ * ~

He heard a woman’s voice droning on about the horrors of the old world as he was brought into the room. The first thing he saw were rows of desks with girls sitting in them, all wearing red. He was the only male in the room.

As he walked down the aisle to an empty seat in the back, he passed by his college best friend, Charlie, who was sitting at a desk also wearing red. He knew she was an omega, so she must’ve been rounded up like he was. When he caught her eye, she subtly shook her head to silently tell him not to acknowledge that they know each other.

He sat down in the back row at an empty desk next to a young girl with curly blonde hair and dark eyeliner. After he’s seated, the woman at the front of the room dressed in a dowdy gray dress resumed her ranting. “As birth rates fell due to pollution and climate change, they made it worse with heat suppressors, morning after pills, and doctors murdering pups in the womb,” she yelled. “Just so they could continue sleeping around like whores desperate for a knot. They were dirty, useless sluts!” The woman walked down the aisle and looked directly at each omega. “But you are special girls,” she said, before noticing him. “I’m sorry, there’s a boy with us now too! How wonderful!” She smiled at him in a way that was almost predatory.

The rest of the omegas turned around to look at him, but were quickly reprimanded and told to stare straight ahead. The woman continued as if she’d never been interrupted. “Fertility is a gift directly from the Great Alpha.” She smiled at them all while she waited for that to sink in. “You girls, and boy,” she added on with another creepy smile sent his way, “will serve the commanders and their barren wives. You will bear children for them.” She clapped. “You have been given such a wonderful opportunity! You are so lucky!”

The blonde girl beside him snickered. “This is insane!” The rest of the omegas gasped and began whispering to each other, but they stopped the moment the woman in gray glared at them.

“Be quiet, girls,” she said softly as she approached the blonde girl next to him.

“Here we go,” the girl mumbled under her breath.

He tried to sink as low in his seat as possible, because he didn’t want to be associated in any way with this girl. He had a feeling whatever was about to happen next wasn’t going to be good. The woman in gray stopped next to the blonde girl and said, “Welcome to the Purgatory Training Center, dear.”

The blonde girl rolled her eyes.

“Get up,” the older woman ordered.

“Fuck you!” The blonde girl yelled. Within a matter of seconds the older woman pulled out a cattle prod and shocked the blonde with it. She screamed and fell down out of her chair. It took every ounce of control he had not to gasp or show his fear.

The older woman nodded to a few other women wearing brown who had been standing by the side of the room the entire time to come forward and drag the blonde girl out. “I’m sorry for that rude interruption,” the older woman said in a shockingly cheerful tone. “I know this must sound strange to you all, but strange is a matter of perspective. It will become normal after a time.” She smiled at each of them as she walked back to the front of the room. “Just give it time.”

Later that evening after they’d been sent to bed, he had a quick whispered conversation with Charlie. It was the first time they were able to chat since he was brought here. They purposefully chose beds next to each other because all of the omegas sleep in the same big room. Routinely the women wearing brown or gray, betas apparently, would come check to make sure everyone was asleep. They have to time their hushed conversation around those bed checks.

“I tried to run with her,” he whispered. “She was so heavy. I tripped, and they caught me. I really tried, Charlie.” He felt a couple tears slip out of his eyes, and looked over to see that Charlie’s eyes were also glassy.

“I know you did,” she whispered back. “You’re going to get her back. This can’t last forever. Eventually the war will end and everything will go back to normal. Then we’ll find her together, I swear.”

“You pinky swear?” He asked with a small smile.

“Yeah, I fucking pinky swear,” she said, holding out her pinky for them to shake on it.

“What about Dorothy?” He asked. Dorothy and Charlie had tried to escape together before he’d tried to leave with his brother and pup.

“They said our relationship was an abomination,” Charlie whispered with a frown. “Since she wasn’t an omega, she was sent to the Empty.”

“I’m sorry,” he mouthed to her. They heard the door open then and quickly went back to pretending to be asleep. It must be time for the next round of bed checks.

He heard multiple pairs of footsteps walking towards them and squeezed his eyes shut. A girl was moaning and crying, and he squinted his eyes open to see what was happening. It was the blonde girl from earlier today. The betas put her in an empty bed and tucked her in before leaving the room and closing the door again.

The girl continued to cry pitifully. He could see that her left hand was wrapped in a bloody cloth. “What did they do to her?” He asked Charlie.

“They cut off her hand,” Charlie whispered through gritted teeth. “We’re breeding stock, we don’t need hands for that.”

He squeezed his eyes shut and prayed to any god that would listen to get them the hell out of there.

~ * ~

He turns his focus back to the wall in front of him when Ofmarv says his name. Charlie isn’t hanging up there, and that gives him hope that she’s still out there somewhere. That she's still fighting.

“Should we take the long way?” Ofmarv asks him.

He wishes he could spend some more time outside, but he can’t today. “I have to get ready for rutting day.” He tries not to let his panic get to him. It’s his first rutting day at this new house, and his nerves spike at the uncertainty of being with a new Alpha.

“Praised be,” Ofmarv says joyously. “We’ll go straight home then. I hope the Great Alpha fills you with His divine miracle.”

“Praised be,” he replies automatically, though that’s the last thing he wants.

When he gets home he heads up to his room. He only has about an hour before the rutting starts. He undresses and bathes himself, making sure to take extra care in cleaning his hole. It’s an omega’s duty to be presentable to their Alpha on rutting day.

He’s especially nervous because he’s unsure if his new Alpha is aware that he’s a male omega. Most Alphas would be pleased simply because of how rare a breed they are, but some who are deeply homophobic may get angry. He doesn’t want to be forced to leave this house. Even though he’s only been here a week, he’s already started to become friends with Benny and Castiel. Well maybe ‘friends’ is too strong a word, but as close to friends as he can get in his position.

He heads down the hallway to the Rolstons’ bedroom. All of the staff meets first in the bedroom to oversee that the rutting is going to take place. It’s required to make sure that an attempt at breeding has been made. Thankfully nobody has to be in the room during the actual consummation. He can feel himself starting to shake with nerves as he approaches the closed bedroom door. The last time he’d been knotted was while he was being raped eight years ago. He tries his best not to think about that time, but the memories haunt him.

Life is funny that way. The absolute worst moment in his life ended up bringing about the absolute best thing in his life. His pup. He closes his eyes and lets himself picture her for a moment. He watches her jump around through the field behind their house, looking for frogs to catch. He remembers how she’d found one and had been so excited to show it to him. He’d been a bit grossed out, but he put on a big smile and told her how proud he was of her. Then she’d jumped up into his arms, and he’d held her, breathing in her beautiful honeysuckle scent. He wonders if she remembers him. Does she miss him as much as he misses her? _Oh please, Great Alpha… don't let her forget me._

He takes a few deep breaths before opening the bedroom door and stepping inside. He’s a bit early so nobody else is in the room yet. He walks forward and kneels down on the red pillow that’s been set in the middle of the floor for him. Then he waits.

He hears the bedroom door open and a pair of heavy footsteps enter the room. It’s Benny. “Those cookies you got today were very fresh,” he says with gratitude. That makes him smile. Benny probably knows how fucked up this situation is, but he doesn’t have the power to do anything about it. All he can do is be as nice to the new omega as possible. He appreciates the gesture.

Another pair of footsteps enters the room. It’s probably Castiel. He comes to a stop next to Benny and stays silent until Benny speaks again. “I wish they’d hurry up. Some of us have work to finish.”

“Alphas can’t help being late,” Castiel replies in his deep voice. “It’s part of their personality or something.” Benny chuckles, and the omega can’t help but smile slightly as well. He can feel Castiel’s eyes on him, but he doesn’t dare turn around. He keeps his head facing down at the floor while he waits.

The sound of heels outside of the door alerts them to Mistress Abbadon’s presence. She sits down in her chair with a displeased look on her face. He understands that it must be hard to have to watch her husband try to get an omega pregnant because she can’t bear children, but he doesn’t have it in him to feel sorry for her. After all, he’s the one getting knotted against his will.

Finally Commander Alistair enters the room. He nods at the household staff and then at his wife before finally standing in front of where the omega is kneeling. “Let’s begin.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I seem to be entirely unable to stop myself from starting new WIPs, but hey, it's 2020, Supernatural is ending, the world is depressing, might as well keep writing away the pain :))


	2. Rutting Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please read the tags. This fic is going to have lots of instances of rape or extremely dubious consent. If that is a trigger for you, skip ahead to the paragraph that starts with "He changes into his sleep clothes..."
> 
> I'm on a roll with this story and having writer's block on a couple of my other ones, so I guess I'll keep posting. Hope you're enjoying it!

The household staff exits the room first, followed by Mistress Abbadon, leaving him alone with his new Alpha. He takes a deep breath and closes his eyes, trying his best to steady his racing heart. It’s going to be alright. Only an hour or so at most and then he won’t have to do this for another month.

“Get up, omega,” his Alpha says gently. He stands up, and his Alpha guides his chin up so they’re looking at each other. “I know you’re nervous. Don’t worry, I am too.” That’s surprising. What should the brave Commander have to be nervous about? “Why don’t you get undressed and present yourself, and I’ll go get myself ready. Then we’ll take it nice and slow.” His Alpha steps into the adjoining bathroom and closes the door. This gives him time to take another deep breath. So far this is better than he could’ve hoped for. Alpha seems nice and like he’s going to make this as easy as possible for him.

He takes off his boots first, placing them on the floor beside the bed. Then he takes off his bonnet, running his hands through his short hair to fix it. His nerves pick up again at the realization that his Alpha still doesn’t know he’s a man. All of his niceness could’ve just been an act that will disappear when he finds out. He takes another deep breath as he takes off his dress and folds it up neatly before doing the same with his plain white boxers.

He gets up onto the king sized bed and positions himself on his hands and knees with his head resting down on the bed and his ass up in the air in the presenting pose they were taught. He looks over towards the left of him where he can see the curtains that usually line the bed have been pulled back. He sees an old desk that’s empty except for the lamp on top of it. It probably used to hold a computer, but those are forbidden everywhere except in the Alpha’s secret office. Nobody is allowed to enter his office except for him, not even his wife.

He hears the bathroom door open, signaling that his Alpha is coming back into the room, and his heart leaps in his chest. How is he going to react to him being a man?

“Ofal?” His Alpha asks questioningly, and the omega hears him step closer to the bed. “You’re a male omega?”

He swallows down his nerves in order to answer his Alpha. “Yes, Alpha. I’m sorry if that displeases you.”

“Displeases me?” His Alpha says, stepping into his line of sight to gently stroke his jaw. “It does the opposite.” _Does his Alpha like that he’s a man?_ “I’ve heard stories of male omegas, but I didn’t know if they were fictions. Have you met any other male omegas?”

“I haven’t met any others, Alpha,” he says quietly, ashamed of the fact that he’s a biological freak.

“Incredible,” his Alpha whispers. “And I have you all to myself.”

He can feel himself shaking under the scrutiny. “Yes, Alpha.”

His Alpha strokes his jaw again. “Don’t worry, pet, I’m going to take good care of you.”

He finds himself preening from the use of that word and leans into it the next time his Alpha strokes his cheek. His Alpha growls in arousal, liking how responsive he is. He feels his Alpha kiss him on his shoulder and then place kisses down his spine. He can feel his hole starting to quiver in anticipation.

His only experience with sex so far in his life has been pain. His last Alpha wasn’t able to get an erection, so they never actually consummated their pairing. Before all of this he hadn’t tried dating anyone after his rape. His focus had been on trying to deal with his trauma and on taking care of his pup. This is a totally new experience to him.

When his Alpha kisses the base of his spine, he finds himself instinctively spreading his legs further apart. His Alpha seems to like that because he can hear him tearing off his clothes in preparation. He feels his Alpha’s big hands spreading his cheeks gently and blowing warm air on his hole. He feels so exposed, but surprisingly he feels safe. The first bit of slick starts dampening his hole, and his Alpha breathes him in deeply.

“You smell divine, little pet,” his Alpha croons, and he spreads his legs even further apart in invitation. His Alpha growls again and leans in even closer to smell his entrance as more slick pours out. He whimpers when he feels the first tentative lick at his tight ring of muscle. “Do you like that, pet?”

“Yes, Alpha,” he moans. His Alpha continues to lick at the omega as if he’s dining at a five star restaurant. It’s dirty and wrong and fucking hot. He never knew that it was possible to feel this way.

By the time he feels Alpha’s thick cock nudging at his entrance, he’s so wet that he knows he won’t feel any pain. His Alpha grabs his hips before slowly sliding all the way in. He feels his Alpha’s hips pressed up against his ass and groans at the fullness. It isn’t pain, but it isn’t quite pleasure either. His Alpha pulls out of him until only the head remains inside and then thrusts back in. The omega moans as the Alpha starts pounding into him, gripping onto his hips hard enough to leave bruises.

He can feel his own cock starting to fill up. Male omegas have smaller cocks than betas or Alphas, but they’re still fully functional. Technically he could even fuck someone, but nobody would want to be fucked by an omega.

He can feel his Alpha’s breath on the back of his neck as he leans over him and thrusts even harder. He moans when every other thrust hits a place deep inside of him that he didn’t know existed. After a while he begins to feel his Alpha’s knot start to expand. Initially his anxiety comes back because of the last time this happened, but he reminds himself that his Alpha is being so gentle and would never hurt him. He breathes and relaxes enough to where his hole can take in the bigger intrusion.

His Alpha forces his knot into him and grunts as his first load is released deep inside his womb. Alpha Alistair positions them on their sides so they can lay together while they’re connected. The omega sighs in relief, because even though he would rather not be here, that wasn’t as bad as he was imagining it would be. There’s a part of him that craves a knot. He hates himself for even admitting that, but some biological part of him deep down craves the feeling of being full and taken care of like this.

“You were so good for me, pet,” Alpha Alistair whispers in his ear before kissing his neck gently. He preens under the praise. “Such a good omega.” He feels another pulse of cum enter him, and his Alpha groans in pleasure.

It takes about twenty minutes for Alpha’s knot to deflate enough to where they’re able to separate. Alpha gives him a quick kiss on the forehead before reiterating how good he’d been, and he walks back up to his bedroom in a daze.

He changes into his sleep clothes: a plain white nightgown and his bonnet. For some reason they’re still required to cover their hair even when they’re sleeping.

He lays down in his bed and tries to quiet his mind enough to get to sleep, but his thoughts won’t stop racing. He is a sex slave. He just got knotted by a random Alpha and he _enjoyed_ it. How fucked up is that?

_Is it still rape if he enjoys it?_

He closes his eyes. He can feel the Alpha’s cum running out of him. He can smell his nauseating sulphur scent on his skin. He hadn’t noticed it earlier because it’s not like he’d scented the guy, but now that he smells it he can’t believe he hadn’t noticed it sooner. It’s cloying and thick and makes him want to gag. He gets up quickly and leaves his bedroom, running down the back stairs without stopping to think about how he’s breaking curfew. He needs fresh air right now or he’s going to throw up.

Once he’s on the first floor, he opens the back door and steps out into the courtyard. The crisp night air helps to ground him, and he puts his hands on his knees while he tries to calm down his breathing. After a few minutes his heart rate finally begins to slow, and he can feel himself coming back to reality. He stands up straight, and his heart stops for a second.

Castiel is sitting on the top of the stairs to his guest house, and it looks like he’d been enjoying the night air while reading a book. The Alpha’s driver is staring at him with a concerned look on his face. _He is so screwed!_ It’s not like he was trying to escape or something, but he’s out after curfew. That’s enough of an infraction to have him sent to the re-training center.

He quickly runs back up to his room, fully panicking again. He sits down on his bed and rocks back and forth, clutching his stomach and praying that Castiel won’t report what he saw.

~ * ~

The sound of whimpering and crying was loud enough to wake up most of the omegas. There were grumbled complaints from some of them, and others got out of bed to try and assess the situation. As two of the older omegas, he and Charlie got out of bed to see what was wrong.

It was the girl who’d lost her hand. Her name is Claire.

He’d been at the Purgatory Training Center for two full weeks now and every night without fail, Claire woke them up with her crying. She was one of the younger omegas in their group, couldn’t be more than fifteen. After the traumatic start to her training, she’d been struggling to cope.

“Claire, sweetie, you need to stop crying,” he murmured to her. He gave her a hug and rubbed his hands soothingly up and down her arms. She was gasping for breath now, her crying increasing in intensity. Apparently whatever he was doing to try and comfort her wasn’t helping. Charlie walked forward after a few moments and slapped her to try to break her out of it.

Claire groaned in pain and tried to cup her cheek with her left hand before remembering it’d been cut off. That started up another wave of tears, but they were quieter this time. “I want my dad.”

“He's gone,” Charlie said sternly. “That’s all gone. Now stop crying and get into bed.” Her no-nonsense approach was the opposite of his own. Claire still didn’t stop crying. “If you can’t get control of yourself, you’ll be sent to The Empty,” Charlie said. “They’ll force you to clean up toxic waste until your skin peels off in sheets and your insides are destroyed. And then you’ll die.”

“I want my dad,” Claire repeated. Charlie threw up her hands in defeat, and he took back over. He shushed her, helping her back under the covers before giving her a comforting kiss on the forehead.

After Claire was safely back in bed, he turned back to Charlie with fear in his eyes. “Hey,” Charlie said, grabbing his arm. “That shit is contagious. Do you want to see your baby girl again?” He nodded through his panic. “Then you need to keep your fucking shit together.”

~ * ~

He comes back to the present with a gasp. _Keep your fucking shit together._ He repeats those words over and over in his mind as he falls asleep. Tomorrow will be a new day.

When he wakes up in the morning, the first thing he does is go to the window and look down at the driveway. Castiel is washing the Alpha’s car. He knows Castiel saw him breaking curfew last night. So why haven’t the Guardians come to take him to the re-training center? Castiel looks up and sees him in the window. He quickly closes the curtains. Castiel must not have told anyone. Why hasn’t he?

The morning bell rings three times in a row. That’s not the bell to signal shopping time. That bell means all the omegas are to meet in the town square immediately. He goes downstairs to tell Benny that he won’t be able to do his shopping today. A summons is considered more important than his normal duties. “Good morning,” he says. “I’ve been summoned-"

“I heard, cher,” Benny says with a chuckle. “So now I have to do my chores as well as your shopping.” At first he thinks Benny is mad, but he looks up and sees that the beta has a small smile on his face to show he’s only joking.

Castiel steps into the kitchen then and shoots an indecipherable look towards him. “Good morning,” he says in his gravelly voice. No beta has the right to have a voice that low.

“Good morning to you,” Benny replies.

“Praised be,” he says meekly.

He can feel Castiel’s eyes on him for a moment longer before he turns towards Benny. “Uh, the Commander requests that you get more peaches if there are still some available.”

“I’ll keep an eye out for them,” Benny says. “Any other special requests?”

“I saw salmon yesterday at Loaves and Fishes,” he says quietly, and Castiel immediately turns his gaze back towards him. “It looked good. You should get some.” He looks up to see Castiel’s blue eyes narrow at him.

“Peaches and salmon,” Benny laughs. “Not a very appetizing combination.” The beta exits the kitchen to go do the shopping, leaving Castiel and him alone. He slowly looks up to meet Castiel’s eye. The driver just shakes his head and huffs a soft laugh.

The bell chimes three times again, meaning he needs to get a move on. Castiel gives him a nod. “Go in grace,” he says before leaving the kitchen. He watches Castiel walk away. The driver is wearing all black as usual. He's unsure if that's by choice or if drivers have their own special uniforms. Either way, the older man looks good in it.

He heads towards the town square with the rest of the omegas and begins looking for Ofmarv. She appears suddenly beside him in the crowd. “Blessed be the womb,” she greets him.

“May the Great Alpha make me fruitful,” he parrots the standard reply.

They walk forward into the town square in two lines, lined up side by side. Every omega stands next to their walking partner. When they get onto the field, they take their places kneeling on the red pillows that have been brought for them. He kneels on his pillow, taking care not to accidentally kneel on his dress. He quickly glances around them and sees multiple Guardians on the edges of the field holding their machine guns. They’re probably here to make sure nothing goes wrong during the proceedings. At the front of the town square is a big stage with the flag of their new nation proudly displayed. It’s the silhouette of a wolf howling at the moon.

He looks to his right when another omega comes to sit next to him. It’s Bela. She was one of the friends he made while at the Purgatory Training Center. He hasn’t seen her since then, so he greets her with a small smile.

“Guided by His howl,” he greets her with a whisper.

“Guided by His howl,” she replies with a smile. “Hey!” She says once their obligatory greetings are out of the way.

“Hi,” he replies. “Where are you posted?”

“Commander Adler,” Bela replies. That means her new name must be Ofzach. “He can barely get it up,” she says with a smirk. He knows what that’s like from his first Alpha. So many of the Commanders are past their prime. “Where are you?”

“Rolston,” he responds quietly.

“Fancy-pants!” Bela says enviously. “Nice house, I bet.”

He nods. “Have you heard about anyone else from Purgatory?” He sees Ofmarv look at him out of the corner of her eye. She’s probably annoyed that they’re talking when they’re not supposed to, but tough shit. He hasn’t seen any of his friends since he finished his training. “I saw Ruby a couple weeks ago,” he continues. “She had a miscarriage.”

“That sucks,” Bela says sadly. “Have you heard from Charlie?”

“No, not since Purgatory.”

A voice comes from a few rows in front of them. It’s Claire. She leans around her walking partner to look back at them. Her curly blonde hair is barely contained under her bonnet, and she’s holding her very pregnant belly with her one good hand. “Charlie? She’s dead.” She goes back to facing forward.

He feels like his world comes crashing to an immediate stop. “Claire!” he hisses, trying to get her attention back.

“Quiet!” One of the Guardians on the sidelines orders.

“Claire,” he whispers a bit more quietly this time. She turns back around to smile at him. “Who’s dead?”

“Charlie,” she says, nodding her head quickly. Ever since her forced amputation, she’s become a bit unhinged. They all call her Crazy Claire. He needs to make sure she’s being serious. “Yeah, she tried to run away. They caught her and sent her to The Empty. So she’s dead,” Claire pats her pregnant belly. “She’s dead by now.”

He hears a hollow ringing in his ears, and it takes every bit of control he has not to collapse. He stays kneeling on his pillow, but his body sways slightly. 

Aunt Naomi steps onto the stage then, holding up a microphone and wearing her usual gray dress. “Good morning, girls.”

“Good morning, Aunt Naomi,” they all respond in unison.

“I’m sure we’re all aware of the horrible circumstances that bring us together on this beautiful morning, when I know we’d all rather be somewhere else.” He’s barely able to pay attention to her. It’s taking all of his focus to make sure he doesn’t pass out. “But we all have our duties,” she continues. “And duty is what brings us together today.” Aunt Naomi raises her hand, and two Guardians dressed all in black step forward holding a man in shackles between them. Aunt Naomi walks over towards the man and points at him angrily before turning back to the omegas. “This man has been convicted of rape,” she says with barely suppressed emotion. “As you all know, the penalty for rape is death.” The omegas around him gasp and whisper amongst themselves. “You girls know how hard I try to protect you from the evil in the world,” Aunt Naomi continues. “Sometimes bad things happen despite my efforts. This man raped an omega.” They all gasp again. “She was pregnant, and the pup died.” The gasps turn into screams of outrage and pain.

“You know what you’re supposed to do, girls,” Aunt Naomi yells and signals for them to stand up.

He remains kneeling, and Ofmarv has to bend down to help him stand up on shaking legs. “Ofal? Are you okay?” she asks. He nods because there’s nothing else to say at this point.

The omegas all walk to the center of the town square and form a circle. The two Guardians bring forward the condemned man and throw him on the ground. “When I blow the whistle, what you do is up to you,” Aunt Naomi says, bringing the whistle to her lips. “Until I whistle again for you to stop.”

She blows the whistle. All at once, the omegas rush towards the man and begin kicking him, scratching him, and beating him. The irony is not lost on him that they’re victims of society-enforced rape being given the chance to let off some steam by killing a rapist, but he doesn’t care. Charlie is dead. His pup is gone. He’s trapped in this horrible world with absolutely no chance of escaping. He rushes towards the front of the group and begins kicking the man with all of the force he can muster.

After a couple minutes, the man is broken and bloody. They continue to pile on him until he's past dead. When they hear the sound of the whistle cut through their screams of rage, they all stop and move backwards away from the body. The ringing in his ears is back. He can’t believe he just participated in a group killing of this man, criminal or not. He feels sick to his stomach, but there’s also a rush of endorphins that temporarily clears his head.

“Ofal,” Ofmarv walks forward to grab him as he’s panting from exertion. “Are you alright?”

He takes a couple deep breaths and then nods. While he’s composing himself, he hears the bell ringing again, signaling that they can return to their houses. Claire waddles past them and waves, “Have a nice day!”

The two of them begin the walk towards the river and back towards their houses, and he thinks about Charlie.

~ * ~

A car horn honked as he waited at the back of the line for their tickets. The movie theater was packed tonight. Charlie appeared by his side out of breath.

“Sorry I’m late,” she panted. “Fucking Uber.”

He nodded absently, but continued listening to the endless ringing of his brother’s phone. Why couldn’t he answer his damn phone?

“This place is packed! Do you want to go somewhere else?” Charlie asked. He didn’t answer, he just redialed his brother’s number for the tenth time. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“Sorry, I’m trying to get a hold of Sam. He’s on his way to Portland for a meeting, but I guess there’s shitty cell service.” He hung up the phone in defeat, figuring he’ll call Sam again later. “Umm,” he said, unsure how to broach the subject of why he’s so upset. “I think I’m pregnant.”

“What?” Charlie asked in shock. She knew about his rape last month. She was actually the one who drove him to the hospital. Of course the authorities didn’t consider it rape. As an omega he was probably asking for it by walking home alone at night and not covering up his enticing smell. When Charlie saw his worried expression, she quickly leaned in for a hug. “It’s going to be okay. Do you need me to take you to the omega center?”

He shook his head. It wasn’t the pup’s fault he was raped. He didn’t want to hurt his pup for something awful that happened to him. Of course it was almost impossible to get an abortion these days anyways. Even in cases of rape. “I want to keep it.”

“Okay,” Charlie said with a smile that faltered when she saw he still wasn’t smiling. “What’s wrong then?”

“I’m scared, Charlie,” he whispered.

“It’s going to be okay,” Charlie repeated. “The doctors are saying getting pregnant is the hard part. You’ll be fine!”

“That’s not all the doctors are saying though,” he said in a panic. “I know three omegas at work who have had miscarriages, and some of them were pretty far along.” He ran his hands through his short hair nervously. “One omega I know was able to carry to term, but her pup only lived for a few days.”

“That’s not going to happen to you,” Charlie said, giving him a gentle squeeze on the shoulder.

“You don’t know that, Charlie.” He shook his head. “It could happen.”

“Well if it does, you’ve got Sam and you’ve got me,” Charlie replied. “I’ll always be there for you.”

~ * ~

Ofmarv’s voice brings him back to the present. “I’m so sorry about your friend,” she says softly so the Guardians patrolling the street won’t hear her. “Charlie? You knew her from the Purgatory Training Center?”

“And from before,” he responds.

“Was there ever a before?” Ofmarv asks, shocking him. “Feels like it’s imagined.” They stop walking in front of one of the tiny shops along the river boardwalk. “This used to be a chocolate shop,” she says. “They sold the best chocolate covered strawberries. They were better than sex.” She closes her eyes, remembering, and he looks at her in confusion. Who is this girl and what has she done with the brainwashed optimist that he’s known for the past week? “Well, better than _good_ sex,” she lowers her voice into a whisper.

“I thought you were a true believer,” he says in surprise.

“So are you,” Ofmarv replies with a smile. “They do that well. Make us distrust each other.”

A black van drives down the street towards them, and he ducks his head. “Guardians,” he warns.

“Come on,” Ofmarv grabs his arm, and they continue walking down the boardwalk. He doesn’t breathe again until the van has passed. They don’t stop walking until they make it to the river. “How old is your pup?” Ofmarv asks.

“Eight,” he replies with a small smile. “She’d be eight.”

“My wife and I had a son, Ash,” Ofmarv says quietly. “He would’ve just turned six.” He tries not to let the surprise show on his face that she just casually came out like that. Gay and lesbian people can automatically be labeled ‘gender-traitors’ and be forced to go to The Empty. It’s dangerous to talk about sexuality here. He continues walking with her as if she hadn’t just shared something incredibly personal. The fact that she had shared with him makes him trust her though. “They had Canadian passports, but I didn’t. I got caught at the airport.”

“My brother and I tried to cross over in Washington,” he explains. “They shot him.”

Ofmarv gives him a sad look. “They weren’t going to let any of us get out. Not if you were an omega.” They stop in front of the Rolstons’ house, and he puts his hand on the gate latch. He doesn’t want to leave yet. He’s finally found someone he can talk to. “It’s nice to finally meet you,” Ofmarv says in goodbye.

“It’s nice to meet you too,” he replies. A Guardian walks down the sidewalk as he turns to open up the gate.

He’s through the gate by the time the Guardian passes. Once the man is out of earshot, Ofmarv leans towards the gate so she can whisper to him. “There’s a Guardian inside your house. Be careful!” She turns to head across the street to where her own house is. “Guided by His howl,” she says as she leaves quickly without turning back.

There’s a Guardian in the house? He walks up the steps to the back door in a daze. Ofmarv wouldn’t have risked telling him that if it wasn’t true. He’s not sure how she could possibly know, but he trusts her. _There’s a Guardian in the house_. Who is it?

The Guardians are the military group that keeps order under the new regime. The Commanders are the ones in power, but the Guardians uphold that power. Some of them are obvious to spot: the men dressed all in black at the grocery store or at the group execution earlier, the ones driving throughout the city in their black vans. Others are hidden, plain-clothes operatives that function as secret police.

It could be anyone, but realistically it’s most likely either Benny or Castiel. The shock of that revelation proves that he’d already begun trusting both of them even though he’d been trying not to. This isn’t good. He walks into the house and sees a bustle of activity. Multiple betas are working with Benny to prepare some sort of dinner. The Rolstons’ must be hosting guests at their house today. He ducks into an alcove when he hears Mistress Abbadon’s heels on the floor. After she passes by him, he follows quietly behind her to see where she’s going.

There are multiple Commanders laughing and talking with each other. He sees Alpha Alistair among them. When Mistress Abbadon approaches the group, Commander Alistair says, “Let’s continue this in my office.” He holds open the door for the other men to enter. He knows women aren’t allowed to enter the office, Alpha or not. Mistress Abbadon stands still with a vacant expression on her face. “We’ll meet you back outside for dinner, dear.” He gives her a little smile and then closes the door in her face.

Mistress Abbadon continues to stand outside the door, obviously upset. She turns around, sees him staring at her, and uses what little authority she has in this house to order him around. “Go back to your room!” He smirks because he knows exactly what she’s doing, but he heads upstairs to his room anyways.

He goes to sit down on his bed. Someone is watching. Someone is always watching. Nothing can change. It all has to look the same, because he intends to survive this place. _For her_.

Her name is Krissy. His brother’s name was Sam. His name is Dean.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reminder that it's still rape even if you get aroused or experience some pleasure. Dean is going to deal with a lot of confusion and shame about what's happening to him, and I want to make sure none of you feel that way if you've had prior experiences.


	3. The Commander's Driver

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're going to get to see a bit of Castiel's POV starting this chapter. He is going to refer to Dean with she/her pronouns right now because he's not aware that Dean is a man.

Castiel is loading boxes into the trunk of the Commander’s government issued Range Rover when he sees Ofal walk past him to meet up with her shopping partner. He’s heard about Ofmarv. He’ll need to find a chance to warn Ofal about getting too close to her. Already he overhears her greet Ofmarv like an old friend. The other omega is alert enough to see him watching them out of the corner of his eye and makes sure to use the standard greeting.

“Blessed be the womb,” Ofmarv says loudly enough that he can hear it. She’s good, he’ll give her that.

He can tell Ofal is confused when she responds, “May the Great Alpha make me fruitful.”

Castiel grunts as he picks up another heavy box to load into the trunk. It’s a bit chilly this morning, so he’s wearing his black overcoat on top of his usual outfit. At least the physical labor is helping to warm him up. He has no idea what’s in these boxes to make them so heavy, but he just does what he’s told.

Castiel looks back over at the omegas while he closes the trunk and sees that Ofal is looking at him. Whenever they make eye contact, he’s drawn to her beautiful green eyes. He’s not supposed to make eye contact with her of course, but something about the omega has him breaking all sorts of rules. She’s new to this world, only been out of the training center for a few months. She’s so innocent to the way things work, but she has a spark in her eyes. A spark many omegas lose over time.

It’s easier for omegas to survive if they lose that spark, but something about Ofal has him wanting to protect her from that. He likes seeing that hint of defiance in her like when she’d played that little prank on him the other day, asking Benny to go buy salmon after he’d told her he doesn’t like it. He doesn’t want her to lose that. That’s why he didn’t report her the other night after rutting day when she’d blatantly broken curfew. He doesn’t want a black van to take her away and beat that fire out of her.

He watches as she and Ofmarv walk together to go do their shopping. When they’re out of sight, he heads up the stairs to his guest house. Castiel checks his radio to see that he has a message from Commander Azazel. He probably wants to know about the new omega. He listens to the message and then puts the radio back in his secret compartment under a loose floorboard, covering it up with his rug after he’s done. He’ll have to find some time to sneak out later to go meet with him, but for now he needs to talk to Commander Alistair.

He walks over to the main house and knocks on the Alpha’s office door. He’s not allowed to step inside the office unless he’s given explicit permission to do so.

The Alpha opens the door with a smile on his face. “Castiel! How are you doing this fine morning?”

“I am well, Sir,” Castiel replies, bowing his head slightly. “And how are you?”

“Good,” Alistair says enthusiastically. “Come in, come in! I have something I wish to discuss with you.” He opens the office door further and motions for Castiel to come inside. When he’s over the threshold, Alistair closes the door. “I would like you to instruct Ofal to meet me here in my office at nine tonight.”

Castiel’s stomach drops. _Not again_. He tries to keep his voice steady so he doesn’t betray any emotions, “Are you sure that’s a good idea?” he asks. He’s been working at the Commander’s house for almost two years now. The Alpha trusts him, which is why Castiel can get away with asking this question.

Alistair smiles at him, knowing exactly what he’s getting at. “I’m sure you’ll be discreet,” he says.

Castiel just nods and leaves the room. He knows there’s nothing he can do to stop the Alpha when he wants something. However, he does vow to himself that he won’t let the Alpha destroy this willful omega’s fighting spirit.

~ * ~

Once their shopping is finished, Dean sits on a bench by the hanging wall with Ofmarv, Meg, and Ofuriel. They don’t often get time outdoors during nice weather, so they’re trying to enjoy it while it lasts. It is slightly chillier outside today though, which is why they’ve all pulled on their red cloaks and red gloves. They watch as another corpse gets dragged up the wall. Dean wonders what this one did. 

“We should go,” Meg says. “It looks like it’s going to start raining any minute.”

Dean turns to Ofmarv, hoping she’ll pick up his hint that he’d like to talk more. “Would you like to take the long way home?”

“I’d like that,” Ofmarv replies.

“You’re going to get caught in the rain,” Ofuriel says like they’re stupid.

“I like the rain,” Ofmarv says, standing up and waiting for Dean to join her.

“Whatever,” Meg says. “Guided by his Howl.” She and Ofuriel stand up and head in the direction of their houses.

Dean and Ofmarv start walking in the opposite direction. “Do you think it’s safe to talk here?” He asks. 

“If we’re careful,” she replies quietly. They walk for a few paces before she tentatively says, “My real name is Joanna… Jo.”

Dean pauses, unsure whether or not he should confide his true identity. He knows it’s stupid, but he desperately wants to. He needs someone other than the girls he was with in Purgatory to know who he is. “I’m Dean,” he says barely louder than a whisper.

Jo gasps, “You’re?” She stops walking and turns to look at him.

He blushes, looking down. “Yes.”

“Wow,” she starts walking again. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to embarrass you. I’ve just never met a male omega.” She says it really quietly, but Dean still looks around to make sure nobody heard them. There’s barely anybody walking around here anyways, but he can’t help being paranoid. Besides, is it really paranoia when there are actually people out to get you? “If it makes you feel better, you fake it really well,” she says, impressed. “I had no idea.”

“Well I got beaten any time I acted too masculine, so I picked up on how to fake it fast.” He laughs humorlessly.

“Can I hear your real voice?” Jo asks.

He hesitates. “I’m not sure if I’m comfortable with that.” She nods in understanding. “Plus at this point, I’m not even sure I remember what it sounds like.”

“I’m sure you do, but it’s okay,” she says. “I appreciate you sharing who you are with me. I know how scary it is.”

They walk past a Guardian on his rounds and then continue talking once he’s out of earshot. “How are you not afraid all of the time?” He asks the question that’s been burning on his tongue for ages now. She seems completely fearless! Meanwhile he's jumping at shadows and almost shitting himself every time he has to talk to his Alpha. 

“Fear is funny,” Jo says quietly. “I’ve been here for a long time. At first I was petrified constantly. Seconds away from an anxiety attack at all times.” Dean nods. That’s exactly how he’s been feeling lately. “But then I just… stopped caring. I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing, but apathy makes it easier I guess. I don’t care anymore.” She looks at him, and he can see it in her eyes. They’re lifeless.

Maybe that is the way to survive around here, but he’s not ready to give up yet. His daughter is still out there somewhere. They walk for a couple minutes in silence before he breaks it. “Are you from here?”

“Born and raised in Seattle,” she responds. He’s pretty sure that’s the city they’re in now, but of course nobody calls it that anymore. “You?”

“Lawrence, Kansas, if you can believe that,” he chuckles. “My brother Sam moved out here for college, and I moved out with him since I didn’t have an Alpha.”

“If you didn’t have an Alpha, was your pup…” She trails off, seeing the look in his eyes. There are hundreds of stories like his, and he’s sure she can guess what happened without him having to say it. “I’m sorry.” She pauses for a second while she thinks of a way to change the subject. “Do you work in the city? Or did you?”

“I was a mechanic,” he explains. “I worked at a car shop while my brother was going to law school.”

“Law school,” she says, impressed.

“Yep. Omega rights,” he laughs at the irony. Unfortunately Sam was too late, because while omegas have never been treated fairly, they have absolutely no rights now.

“I used to work at a club,” she says, and his eyes widen. That’s dangerous work for an omega. “It was technically a strip bar, but I was mostly the bar tender.”

“I thought everyone at those places got sent to The Empty,” he says in shock.

“I have two functioning ovaries, so they decided to overlook my ‘sinful’ past,” Jo replies bitterly. That must’ve been hard for her being rounded up and sent to a training center all while knowing most of her coworkers would probably be dead by the time she got out. _Fuck_. They turn the corner and are met with the sight of bulldozers tearing down university buildings. This is where Sam went to school. They stand to watch for a while. All trademarks of science and higher learning are being routinely torn down. There’s no need for those things in this new world.

“They tore down Dartmouth and Yale last month,” Jo says somberly. “They fucking erased them.”

Dean turns to look at her. “How do you know that?” She stares evenly at him. “How do you know there’s a Guardian in my house?”

Before Jo has a chance to respond, a black van skids around the corner and stops suddenly right in front of them. Dean holds his breath as two Guardians, dressed all in black, get out and cross the street to grab a man minding his business and holding a briefcase. The man tries to fight them, but he’s no match for the two of them. They drag him to the van and shove him in the back, closing the doors and speeding away like nothing happened.

Dean’s heart rate doesn’t slow down until they’ve made it all the way back to the Rolstons’ house. They hear thunder overhead. It looks like they’re going to be lucky enough to miss the rain.

“It’s okay to be relieved,” Jo says quietly, breaking the silence. “It’s okay to be glad it wasn’t you.”

Dean shakes his head. “It was somebody.” They have no idea what the man had done of course, but it could’ve been anything. The list of infractions worthy of being taken by the Guardians is so long, it’s easier to say what they’re actually _allowed_ to do.

Jo looks around. “There’s a way to help them,” she whispers. “You can join us.”

“What do you mean, ‘us’?” he whispers back.

“There’s a movement,” she grabs his arm and walks him a few steps away so they’re out of view of the house windows.

“I don’t know,” Dean says hesitantly. “I’m not that kind of person.”

“Nobody is until they have to be,” Jo replies. “Rolston is important. He’s _very_ high up. You should find out what you can and tell us.”

“Tell you what?” He asks.

“Anything.” Jo looks at him for a second, but he’s not sure what expression is on his face. Dean has to think about it. His number one priority is Krissy. If he ends up getting caught doing something illegal and sent to The Empty without being able to save her first, he’d never forgive himself. Jo must realize they’ve spent far too much time talking outside the gates because she says, “Don’t tell anyone!” Then she quickly jogs to the other side of the street towards her house.

_There is an us?_ It sounds made-up like rumors in middle school. Passing notes in secrecy, whispering in the hallway, feeling eyes on you everywhere you go. It doesn’t feel like it should be reality. That’s a leftover from an old world.

Now, the Guardians of the Great Alpha still bomb the remains of Houston. Now, Miami is the capital of what’s left of the United States, and the flag that flies over that city has only four stars. Now, pain and paranoia are everywhere. Now there has to be an _us_ , because now there is a _them_.

By the time he gets into the house, his cloak is soaked through from the rain. He sits down on the bench in the casual dining room meant for the ‘help’. It’s adjacent to the kitchen, and Dean can see Benny working on something in there. He hears footsteps and sees Castiel walking towards him.

He pulls off his blinders and gets up to hang up his drenched cloak when Castiel enters the room. “Get caught in the rain?” He asks, and his voice makes Dean shiver. Castiel probably isn’t even aware he’s doing it, but his voice is affecting Dean in a way that he’s heard only Alpha voices can affect omegas. Even with the scent blockers policy on house staff, Dean knows Castiel isn’t an Alpha. He’s not tall enough or muscular enough. His voice is pretty damn deep for a beta though.

Regardless, he’d love nothing more than to lick up Castiel’s throat and feel those vibrations through his tongue while Castiel talks. _And wow that came out of nowhere!_

“Yes,” he replies softly, hoping his voice doesn’t betray him.

Castiel leans over the dining table, planting his hands on the hard surface. “You were gone for a while.”

“Sometimes we walk down by the river,” he answers innocently. Why is he getting interrogated by the household driver of all people?

Dean sits down and bends over to take off his boots. When he raises back up, he accidentally pulls his dress up to reveal part of his thigh. He has a moment of panic before he remembers that he’s been required to shave since he went to Purgatory so he can stay ‘presentable.’ Dean notices Castiel’s eyes land on his exposed leg and then move up to meet his eyes. Dean holds eye contact with him, toying with him a little bit by pulling his dress slightly higher up his thigh and then smoothing it down to where it’s supposed to be.

Castiel continues to look at him with an indecipherable expression on his face. He taps the table gently with his hand. “You need to be careful,” he says seriously.

“By the river?” Dean teases.

“With her,” Castiel says, ignoring him. “Ofmarv.”

Dean quickly finishes taking off his other boot and looks back up at Castiel’s blue eyes in confusion. “She’s my partner. We shop together.”

Castiel looks down at the ground. “Don’t get too close to her. It’s dangerous.” Dean’s eyes narrow, and he can see Castiel’s jaw clench a couple times, but he doesn’t look up at him.

Dean nods to show he understands, even though he has more questions than answers right now. What’s dangerous about Jo? Does Castiel somehow know she’s involved in a resistance movement or is he just giving Dean general advice? How does he know that Dean and Jo are getting close in the first place?

Dean turns to head up the back stairs to his room. As he’s about to open the door, he feels Castiel walk up behind him. Dean stops mid-step, and Castiel almost bumps into him. This is as close as they’ve ever been to each other. Dean can’t help his omega instinct to tilt his head to the side, exposing his neck. He smiles when he hears a sharp gasp behind him. His show of submission most likely took Castiel by surprise. Omegas usually only do that towards Alphas, but Dean is feeling more omega instincts around Castiel even though he’s a beta than he has around any Alpha in his life.

He stands there with his neck open for a moment. It’s almost like he can feel Castiel physically trying to restrain himself from scenting him. Scenting a matched omega is a crime punishable by losing an eye, but Dean is just teasing him. Besides, the Commander is at work, Mistress Abbadon is upstairs in her room, and Benny is busy in the kitchen.

It’s Dean’s turn to gasp when he feels Castiel’s nose rub lightly against his neck while he scents him. He hears Castiel groan behind him, and it sends a shiver down his spine. “Do you like it?” Dean asks softly.

“You have no idea,” Castiel says, his voice even deeper than it usually is. Dean feels Castiel’s hands on his shoulders as he pushes him away from him gently.

Dean smiles smugly when he turns around, but the look on Castiel’s face is serious. “What?” Dean asks.

“While that was enjoyable, that’s not why I stopped you before you could leave,” Castiel says. “He wants to see you.”

“Who?” Dean asks, confused.

“The Commander,” Castiel says as if it’s obvious, and Dean supposes it should’ve been. “Tonight, in his office.”

“Why?” Dean asks in shock. Omegas aren’t allowed to see their Commanders alone outside of rutting days.

“Nine o’clock,” Castiel says with a blank expression on his face. “Don’t be late.” He turns around and leaves the room before Dean can ask him any more questions.

Dean walks up the steps to his room in a daze. When he gets there he starts to pace anxiously. He can feel a panic attack building up, but there’s no way for him to calm down right now. It’s forbidden for omegas to be alone with their Alphas outside of rutting days. They aren’t whores, they’re walking uteruses. Maybe the Commander knows about his friendship with Ofmarv, but how could he possibly know about that? Besides, last time Dean checked, walking by the river wasn’t a crime. Maybe it is now.

He hears sirens coming closer to the house, but the Guardians don’t use sirens. They just come and take people quietly. He looks out the window and sees a red van. The birth-mobile. One of the omegas must be in labor.

“Ofal!” It’s Benny. Dean hears the burly man’s lumbering footsteps racing up the stairs. He is not looking forward to having to go spend hours in labor with whatever omega is giving birth today. “It’s the birth-mobile,” Benny says, as if Dean hadn’t been able to hear the sirens. Benny brings forward Dean’s cloak and helps him put it on even though it’s still soaking wet. “Hurry, they won’t wait all day.”

“Thank you,” Dean says after Benny finishes fastening his cloak.

“I’ll pray for good news,” Benny says as Dean heads downstairs to step into the van. These days nobody gives birth in a hospital. The older beta women act as midwives and the omegas go there for moral support.

He sits down next to Bela when he gets into the van. Another omega he doesn’t recognize is sitting on his other side. She grabs his hands and says, “Isn’t this wonderful?” _Great, a brainwashed one_. He hopes he dies before he turns into that.

“Who is it?” He asks.

“Ofmichael.” Crazy Claire. The poor girl is fifteen while Michael is probably close to forty-five. In the old days that would’ve been called rape. Now Claire is considered to be of prime breeding age. At thirty Dean is considered past his prime, but being a male omega, everyone still has high hopes that he’ll be able to have a few more pups before his uterus runs dry.

What will Claire give birth to? A baby with no heart? Maybe one with missing limbs. The chances of a healthy birth are one in five, if you can get pregnant at all.

~ * ~

Sam raced the Impala through the streets on their way to the hospital. He barely avoided running a few red lights. Every once in a while, he’d look over at Dean to make sure he was alright, and every time Dean would yell at him to keep his eyes on the road. The last thing he wanted was for Sam to crash his Baby.

As they approached the hospital they heard the sound of sirens directing the flow of traffic. There were people lining both sides of the street. At first Dean thought they were protesters, but they were actually holding some sort of vigil to pray for the safe labor of any omega that went into the hospital.

Getting into the labor and delivery room was a nightmare. They had to go through security twice and prove who they were before they were let in. Sam was pretending to be his Alpha, which was disgusting but necessary. Dean wouldn’t be able to keep his pup if he didn’t have an Alpha, and he and Sam already share the same last name. Charlie forged the proper documentation for them to make it look like they were married. When a nurse asked where his mating bite was, he said it was hidden under his clothes. Thankfully they believed him.

~ * ~

His reminiscing is interrupted when they pull up to Commander Michael’s mansion. It makes the Rolstons’ house look modest. Dean wonders if that means Commander Michael is even more important than Commander Alistair.

When they step inside Dean can immediately smell the heavenly aroma of coffee. He inhales deeply and almost moans. He hasn’t tasted real coffee in almost a year. Not since before Purgatory. He takes his blinders off and leaves them on the table where the other omegas are leaving theirs. He sees Bela next to him and whispers, “Coffee.”

“I know,” Bela says enviously. “We do all the work while they pig out.” By ‘they,’ she means the wives. Dean follows other omegas past the living room where the wives have all convened. They’re eating a buffet style meal with Mrs. Abel while they talk about her omega’s pregnancy and ask all sorts of questions about what she plans to name the baby and how they’re going to decorate the nursery. Dean has to fight a smile. The wives and commanders are so oblivious to the state of the world around them. They don’t have to pay attention because all of the horrors in this new world don’t affect them.

While he’s staring into the room, Mistress Abbadon looks up and catches his eye. He still hasn’t been able to get a good read on her. So far she’s seemed pretty sympathetic apart from being upset on rutting day. Dean understands on some level that it must be hard for the wives too. Even though they’re Alphas and have more rights than pretty much anyone else, they’re still women and therefore still have to be subordinate to the Commanders.

He quickly follows Bela up the stairs and can feel Mistress Abbadon’s eyes on him as he goes. When he gets upstairs he can start to hear the other omegas counting with Claire to help her breathe. The room is stifling. There are probably thirty omegas and five betas crammed into the room with Claire laying on the bed groaning in pain. His heart breaks for her. Childbirth isn’t fun at all, and she must be so confused and scared being just fifteen.

He looks around the room for Jo but doesn’t immediately see her so he goes to stand next to Bela. When a few omegas leave the room to take dirty trays of food down to the kitchen, he moves into the space they’ve vacated so he can go talk to Claire. At Purgatory Dean had sort of fallen into an older brother role with her. It's a role he's comfortable in, and after Claire started having her mental breakdown, she really leaned on him a lot.

He steps into her line of sight and catches her eye. Her hair is wet from her sweat, and her face is red and pinched up in pain. “You’re doing great,” he says, reaching out to put his hand on her rounded belly. She turns to look at him, and her eyes light up like they always do when she sees him. He doesn’t deserve that look.

“Hi, D,” she whispers conspiratorially. It had taken weeks of practice to get her to understand that she wouldn’t be allowed to call him ‘Dean’ outside of Purgatory. They’d settled on ‘D’ because it still made her feel special that she could call him by a name nobody else did, but it didn’t give away his secret.

He gives her belly a gentle rub while he thinks back to when his own pup was first born.

~ * ~

He hadn’t known what people meant when they said having children changed them forever, but he understood now. Holding his pup in his arms, he felt whole for the first time in his life. It was like a piece of him was missing, and he finally found it. He leaned down and inhaled Krissy’s unique scent. Pups usually smell clean and fresh, but Krissy smelled perfect. He gave her a couple kisses on her warm forehead and tried not to laugh at Sam’s insanely loud snoring on the chair in the corner. His gangly moose legs took up half of the space in the private hospital room.

All three of them had a tiring day. Dean’s labor was long and stressful since this was his first pregnancy, but thankfully Krissy was born perfectly healthy. It wasn’t until the nurse came by to tell him that all of Krissy’s tests came back totally normal that he was finally able to relax.

Sam had been on high alert all day. Even though Dean isn’t his omega, he is his brother, so all of Sam’s protective Alpha instincts had kicked in full force. The doctors had almost had to forcibly remove him from the room when he went full Alpha. All he’d seen was that Dean was in pain, and his instinct told him to attack whatever was causing the pain. Of course there hadn’t been anything to attack since Dean's own labor was the problem. Dean was able to calm him down and get him to leave to splash water on his face. When Krissy was finally born after nine grueling hours of labor, Sam collapsed into that chair and hasn’t moved since.

Krissy started to open her eyes while Dean rocked her. “Hey, baby,” he cooed. “Did Uncle Sam’s snoring wake you up?” Sam let out a particularly loud snore in perfect timing, and Dean chuckled.

The nurse came in then to go take Krissy for her first bath. Dean said he was feeling good enough to walk around a bit, so he followed her. When they got to the nursery, he was surprised to see that it was completely empty. “Where are all the pups?” He asked in confusion.

“We had a rough night,” the nurse explained. “Two of the pups are in the I.C.U. and the rest are with the Great Alpha now.”

Dean looked at the empty ward in horror. He’d heard the rumors of pups and omegas dying in childbirth or omegas miscarrying before they could reach full term, but seeing it first hand was something different entirely. This was seriously bad!

He closed his eyes and prayed to the Great Alpha in thanks for letting him give birth to a healthy pup.

~ * ~

Dean jumps when one of the betas hands him a tray to take downstairs to the kitchen to be washed. He rushes down to do what he’s told before he can get yelled at. When he gets to the kitchen, he sees the Abels’ beta washing something in the sink.

“Should I wash these?” He asks.

“No, the Mistress is particular. Just leave it there, thanks,” the beta responds. He nods and puts down the tray before heading back into the hallway where he almost bumps into Jo.

“It’s so crowded in there,” she says. “At least someone spiked the juice.” She takes a big swig of what looks like orange juice from a glass and then passes it to him. He takes a sip and relishes the pleasant burn of alcohol as it slides down his esophagus.

After he hands the glass back, he looks over his shoulder to make sure nobody is around. “He wants to see me. Alone,” Dean whispers to her.

“Your Commander?” Jo asks, and he nods slowly. “Shit,” she mutters. “You don’t know why?”

“No,” he hisses.

“Maybe he did this with the omega before you. Maybe she told someone about it,” Jo speculates. “I’ll try to find out.”

“No, it’s too dangerous,” he whispers as she starts to leave.

“Don’t worry,” Jo says with a smile. “I’m sneaky.”

Jo leaves the hallway, and Dean stands there for a moment longer, leaning his forehead against the wall.

“What are you doing?” Comes Mistress Abbadon’s voice from behind him. That’s just what he needs.

“I just needed some fresh air, Mrs. Rolston,” he explains, hoping she’ll buy it. He does feel a bit faint, but not for the reasons she’d think.

“Come with me,” she says, and he sighs. _Can he not catch a break?_ He follows her to the living room where all of the wives are gathered around. Betas come in and out of the room bringing in trays full of food, refilling glasses with the spiked juice, and removing plates once they’re empty. “Ofal, what’s going on up there?” Mistress Abbadon asks him.

“Her contractions are getting much closer together,” he answers meekly, looking down at the ground since he’s in the presence of a bunch of Alpha wives.

One of the wives groans, “It’s taking forever.” Dean wants to hit her. She has no idea what it’s like to go through labor and push a pup the size of an eight pound watermelon out of her body.

“Is it breach?” Another wife asks. “Did you hear that word, dear?”  
  


“No, ma’am,” he replies with a soft smile.

“We’ll have to be patient then, won’t we?”

“Yes, ma’am,” he replies politely.

The Alpha smiles at him like he’s an adorable puppy or something. “Would you like some juice, dear?” She asks.

“You shouldn’t spoil them,” the grumpy wife says under her breath. “Sugar is bad for them.”

“Oh hush, it’s just a little bit,” the other wife argues. “And it is a special day.”

Mistress Abbadon turns to him hesitantly. “Would you like some juice, Ofal?” She holds out a cup towards him. He’s being treated like a child. It’s insulting and demeaning, but he hasn’t tasted juice or alcohol for months. He isn’t going to turn it down just to hold onto his pride. What’s pride worth anyways?

“Yes, please, Mrs. Rolston,” he answers. She hands him the cup, and he takes a small sip, closing his eyes as the flavor explodes on his tongue. It’s wonderful.

The happy wife giggles, “Look how well behaved she is!”

“You can go now,” Mistress Abbadon says, her face stony. He’s unsure if he’s displeased her in some way or if she’s just putting on a front. He really is having a hard time reading her and Commander Alistair. Hopefully he’ll get a better understanding of them as he spends more time in the house.

As he starts to head out of the living room, the grumpy wife groans, “Whores, the lot of them.” She has no shame! She didn’t even wait until he was out of the fucking room.

“You can’t be picky,” he hears Mistress Abbadon say. “You have to take what they give out.” They’re talking about him like he’s an object. He knows that’s how this society sees omegas, but it still hurts nonetheless.

Fuck this! As he’s walking back up the stairs he empties out the glass of alcoholic juice onto one of the Abels’ many plants. He hopes it dies.

When he gets back up to the delivery room, Claire is up on her feet and is being walked slowly around the room with Bela and Ofuriel holding her up. She’s groaning in pain, but her contractions are getting closer and closer together. After a few more minutes, Aunt Naomi steps forward.

“It’s time.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Castiel is really fooling himself if he thinks he'll be able to keep his hands off of Dean for long ;)


	4. The Birth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've got surgery tomorrow so the past couple days I've basically just been writing all day while I prep for it haha

There’s a smell in this room. Something primal, calling back to Charles Darwin. The smell of blood and sweat. They wait with bated breath while Claire pushes and screams, and finally it’s done. One of the older betas grabs the baby while omegas, wives, and betas alike hold their breath. It takes about thirty seconds, but eventually the baby begins to cry.

“A beautiful, healthy baby girl,” Aunt Naomi says with joy. Everyone in the room releases a loud exhale before beginning to laugh with relief and excitement.

The older beta woman cleans off the baby and picks her up. Dean looks over at Claire where she’s crying with a huge smile on her face as she looks at her pup. Her face changes immediately when the beta carries the baby over towards Mrs. Abel. Dean moves over to hold Claire while she cries for a different reason this time. It’s barbaric that omegas aren’t even allowed to hold their pups once they’re born. The pup is softly crying while Mrs. Abel holds her.

“What are you going to call her?” One of the other wives asks as they crowd around her bed.

“Anael,” Mrs. Abel replies and the wives ‘ooh’ and ‘aww’ over the new baby while Claire cries softly.

Dean holds her, moving her head into his neck so she can smell his scent. He assumes it’s comforting to her because back when they were in Purgatory and she’d have nightmares, the only way he could calm her down was by holding her like this.

“She’s beautiful,” he whispers to her as Claire breathes in his scent. “She’s so beautiful.” The other omegas join in to hold onto Claire as they all cry in relief. Relief that she bore a healthy pup, and relief that this long day is finally over.

~ * ~

When he woke up, it was dark outside, and Sam wasn’t in the room. He looked to the side of his bed where they’d put Krissy in her portable crib, but she wasn’t there. The nurse must’ve taken her to run more tests or something. It’s weird that she hadn’t woken him up before taking her though.

“Sam?” He called. When there was no response, he slowly climbed out of his bed. He was still sore obviously, but he was able to walk. He stepped out into the hallway, adjusting his hospital gown because it was falling off of his shoulder. He looked around but didn’t see anybody. This area of the hospital was pretty empty anyways since not many babies were being delivered right now, but there should at least be a few on-call nurses or something.

“Hey,” Sam said, walking towards him from one of the side hallways. He was holding some bags of chips in his hands, probably from the vending machines. “Are you hungry?” He asked, holding up the snacks.

“Maybe in a bit,” he responded. “Where is she?” Sam shrugged once he got closer to him. “Did they take her for a blood test?” Dean asked.

“Huh?”

“Krissy, she’s not here,” Dean explained. They both looked up when they heard a crash come from the other end of the floor. “I thought you had her.”

“I don’t know,” Sam said. An alarm started up then, its sound piercing through the quietness of the hospital. They watched as a group of people rushed across the other end of the floor further down the hallway from where they were standing. Sam started walking briskly towards them. “Wait here, Dean.”

“What’s going on?” Dean asked, starting to follow behind Sam. He had to waddle a bit because his body was still sore from giving birth only a few hours ago.

“Just wait there,” Sam said again.

“Sam!” Dean yelled as Sam started running in the direction of the group of people they’d seen earlier. The alarms continued to blare as Dean tried his best to keep up with his brother. When Dean turned the corner, he saw Sam looking into a hallway perpendicular to the one they were in. Sam immediately dropped the snacks he was holding and started running down the hallway. “Sam?!” Dean started jogging too. His belly was aching, but his adrenaline kicked in to where he didn’t notice the pain. When he got to the hallway Sam had looked down, he gasped. The nurse who had been helping them out was lying on the floor unconscious. A couple other nurses were tending to her. It looked like she’d been hit over the head with something.

“Son of a bitch,” Dean gasped as he looked towards where the nurse was lying on the ground. By the time he turned back around, Sam was no longer in sight. His long legs carried him across the floor much faster than Dean could run.

He saw a woman slowly walk across the hallway carrying something. Dean started running towards her, “Hey, excuse me?” He wondered if she knew what was going on. The woman turned around, and Dean could see that she was holding Krissy. His heart stopped and then started back up again at double speed.

“She’s alive,” the woman said, looking down at Krissy adoringly. “My baby…”

“She’s not your baby,” Dean whispered in shock. He wanted to dive forward and grab Krissy from the other omega, but he was worried about what she might do if he tried that.

“Of course she is,” the omega responded, not looking up from where she was holding Krissy. “Isn’t she beautiful?”

Sam appeared at the opposite end of the hallway then. He was probably coming back to find Dean. When he saw the look of fear on Dean’s face, he could tell immediately that something wasn’t right. The omega looked up, saw the two of them standing there, and then tried to run. Sam was able to catch her and the commotion brought the police officers and nurses who had been searching for the pup this whole time. Dean could hear Krissy crying as they struggled to get her away from the omega. Once they managed to grab on to her they immediately handed her back to Dean. He held her against him tightly as Sam hugged the two of them together. Dean watched as the police officers dragged away the screaming omega and realized that easily could’ve been him if something had happened to Krissy. He already couldn’t imagine his life without her.

~ * ~

The ride back to their houses in the birth-mobile is quiet. A lot of the omegas are actually asleep. Even though they didn’t go through labor themselves, they were crowded together in a room for hours. Everyone is exhausted.

He’s sitting next to Jo this time while Bela is on his other side, resting her head on his shoulder. “Nobody knew what your Commander might want,” Jo whispers. “But that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s something bad.” Dean looks down at his hands clasped tightly in his lap. His anxiety is spiking again. “If he accuses you of anything, don’t defend yourself just apologize profusely,” Jo continues. “They love to be forgiving.”

“Okay,” Dean says quietly. “Thank you for trying.”

Jo nods. “He probably just wants a blow job,” she says and his chest constricts. That’s what Dean was assuming too, and he’s not looking forward to it. “What did he say when he asked you?” She asks. 

“He didn’t. He sent his driver, Castiel.”

Jo stiffens. “Be careful. A lot of the drivers work for the Guardians.”

Dean shifts in his seat so he can look at her straight on. “He said I shouldn’t trust _you_.” Jo raises her eyebrows. “He said you’re dangerous.”

She fumbles for a second before replying. “He’s right. Trusting anyone is dangerous.” She huffs a laugh, “Especially a bisexual gender-traitor.”

That makes Dean crack a smile.

~ * ~

Castiel moves to stand by his window when he hears the bell in the town square clock tower ring out nine times. That means Ofal should be heading down to the Commander’s office any minute now. With the guest house situated above the garage, he’s at the same level as Ofal’s second floor bedroom. Their windows are actually across from each other. He can’t help but watch as she fixes her dress and adjusts her bonnet. She has no idea what’s about to happen, and he feels bad for not telling her. He can see even from over here that her hands are shaking from nervousness.

He shouldn’t feel bad though. His orders were to tell her where to go and when. It’s not his job to comfort her. She holds his gaze through the window, and eventually he has to turn away. He can’t do this. Not after what happened last time. He can’t form attachments.

Part of his brain is telling him that it’s too late for all of that. He crossed the line earlier when he scented her. He knew he shouldn’t have done it, but he couldn’t help himself. Not when she was standing there willing and so submissive. _Fuck!_ And she smelled so good too! Like apple pie and whiskey and leather. It was a surprisingly masculine scent, but he liked it. He liked it a lot.

Castiel sees Ofal close her curtains, and he’s glad. He doesn’t want to see her anxious face anymore. Not when he knows who she’s going to be with in a few minutes.

He has to get out of here.

He grabs his gun from where he’s hidden it under the floorboards and puts it in his pants just in case. He probably won’t need it, but better to be safe than sorry. He puts on his over coat and grabs the keys to the Commander’s car on his way out of the guest house. He takes the stairs down to the driveway two at a time and gets into the car. He doesn’t worry about anyone potentially watching him as he starts it, because he’s the only one watching around here. Or at least the only one in this neighborhood.

He drives towards the usual meeting place. He’d texted Commander Azazel before he left to make sure he was still awake. He should be there by the time Castiel gets there. He doesn’t know what he’s going to tell Azazel. He supposes it depends on what Azazel asks. Castiel does know that he’s not going to say anything about Ofal. That’s not even a question. That realization surprises him because he really doesn’t know Ofal at all. He doesn’t owe her anything. Besides, she’s broken about a dozen rules in the week since she got here. He should report her, but he won’t.

He pulls up to the side street he parks on whenever they’re meeting here and gets out of the car. He walks over towards the park bench that’s hidden in the shadows. The one next to the lamp post that’s conveniently not working. Azazel is already sitting there.

“Good evening, Castiel,” Commander Azazel says. Castiel takes a breath and sits down. Despite the fact that they’ve been working together for quite some time and even knew each other before the takeover, Azazel still gives him the creeps.

“Good evening, Commander,” Castiel replies.

“So, Castiel, it’s been a while since I’ve seen you,” Azazel says. “How is the new omega?”

“She seems to be adjusting,” Castiel says, trying to keep things as vague as possible. He knows Azazel is going to push him further though so he adds, “The Commander is seeing her in his study.”

“I was hoping he’d show more restraint after what happened last time,” Azazel rubs his hand across his face. “Do you think she’s tough enough to handle it?”

“I think so, Sir.”

“If it starts going too far let me know, and I’ll handle it,” Azazel promises. Castiel hopes it doesn’t come to that. He doesn’t want to know what Azazel ‘handling it’ might look like. “How close is she to her shopping partner?”

Castiel stiffens. This is what he was worried about. “She’s only been assigned to the house for a little over a week. I don’t think they’re close.”

Azazel looks at him for a moment, thinking. “We’re taking her in.” Castiel’s heart drops into his stomach. _No, they cant!_ “Don’t tip her off, but we’re going to want to question Ofal as well.” Castiel breathes a sigh of relief. For a moment, he’d thought Azazel was talking about Ofal. The fact that the thought of Ofal being taken freaked him out that much is not good. He barely knows her, and she already has her hooks in him but good.

~ * ~

Dean slowly descends the steps and walks towards the door that’s always closed. Beyond the door is the Commander’s private office. Nobody is allowed inside, not even his wife. What could he possibly be keeping in there? Why did he ask him to come? Dean assumes he must want something, and to want is to have a weakness as the saying goes. That gives him a little bit of hope at least. He raises up his shaking hand and knocks on the door three times.

“Come in!”

Dean takes a deep breath and opens the door. When he steps inside the Commander asks him to close the door behind him. Dean looks around the office and sees that it’s mostly filled with books. That makes sense. Women aren’t allowed to read so he locks his books up in here.

“Sit down,” Commander Alistair says, motioning towards the chair in front of his desk. Dean walks further into the room slowly and sits down on the chair. Once he does, he hears the Alpha walk around the desk to sit on the opposite side. “Thank you for coming.”

“You’re welcome,” Dean replies, looking down at the desk.

“You can look at me,” Commander Alistair says.

Dean keeps his gaze focused on the desk. “We’re not supposed to.”

“We can bend the rules a bit in here,” the Alpha responds. Dean looks up slowly at him and sees him smiling back at him. “Hello, there.”

“Hello,” he says quietly.

“I’m sure you probably find this a bit strange,” Commander Alistair says. That’s an understatement.

Dean pauses for a while because he’s not sure what the right thing to say is. Should he be honest and say he’s freaking out? Or should he play it cool? “I guess it’s a little strange,” he says, hoping that’s the right answer.

The Alpha folds his hands together and continues to look at him. “I want,” he stops. “This is going to sound weird, but I want to play a game with you.”

“A game?” Dean asks, confused.

He pulls out a deck of cards and a box of poker chips. “Do you know how to play?” Alistair gets up and walks over to the pair of leather chairs in front of the crackling fireplace. The chairs are facing each other and in between them is a small table.

“Yes.” Dean is still confused.

“Good!” Alistair starts shuffling the cards and setting up the chips on the table. He looks up when he notices Dean hasn’t moved yet and motions for him to come join him. When the Alpha finishes dealing, Dean holds up his cards and they start to play. Alistair keeps shooting him small smiles every once in a while.

_Has he done this before? With the Ofal that came before him?_

They finish a few hands, and then Alistair counts the chips. “You’re good!” He says excitedly. “But I got you at the end there.”

“I’m rusty,” Dean says with a small smile.

“Then we’ll have to have a rematch,” Alistair says as he picks up the cards and puts away the chips.

“Alright,” Dean says. Once he’d gotten past the pee-your-pants terror, he’d actually enjoyed himself. It’s been so long since he’s been able to play cards. He finds himself looking forward to doing this again, which is kind of hilarious given how nervous he’d been to come here.

“I’ll be out of town next week, but when I get back?”

“I’ll check my schedule,” Dean jokes as if he would have anything else to do.

He looks up, worried for a second that Alistair won’t appreciate the joke. Here goes Dean Winchester’s mouth again, always ruining everything. But when he looks up, he sees that Alistair is smiling at him again.

“Well then,” Commander Alistair says. “See if you can squeeze me in.” He gives Dean another smile. The innuendo isn’t lost on him, and he gulps.

Dean plants a fake smile on his face in response. “Where are you going?” He asks, trying to steer the subject back into calmer waters.

“D.C.” Alistair responds. “Nothing exciting. Just meetings. Always a lot of meetings.”

“After you get back then,” Dean says with another smile.

The Alpha holds eye contact with him. “It’s a date,” he says. “Now I think it’s time for you to go to bed.”

Dean stands up and slowly starts walking towards the door. He hears Alistair get up and start following behind him. When Dean gets to the door, he turns around to face the Alpha. “Thank you for the game.”

“You’re quite welcome,” Alistair says, stepping slightly into his personal space. He holds his hand out as if he’s asking Dean to shake it. Dean grabs his hand, and Alistair holds on to it, stroking it gently. Alistair looks him in the eyes as he slowly leans in. For a second, Dean thinks he’s about to kiss him, and he tries to figure out a way to get out of it without making the Alpha angry. Alistair doesn’t kiss him though. At the last second he turns his head and nuzzles his nose into Dean’s neck, scenting him. Dean sucks in a loud breath in surprise as the Alpha uses the hand he’s still holding to pull him in closer. Their chests are almost touching as Alistair continues to scent him.

After a few more seconds, the Alpha pulls away, and Dean can breathe again. “Goodnight, pet.”

“Goodnight,” Dean replies softly. Alistair lets go of his hand, and Dean leaves the office. He softly closes the door behind himself.

Dean walks back upstairs to his room in a daze. When he gets inside, he closes the door and slowly lets his body slide down it until he’s seated on the floor. He puts his head in his hands and tries to gain control of his breathing. That is not at all how he expected their evening alone to go. There were no sexual favors like he’d been expecting. He’d actually had fun!

The scenting at the end was a little weird, but Dean will take it if it means he can play a game every once in a while. Now he’s mainly just annoyed that Castiel let him worry about this all day by not giving a straight answer when he’d asked what the Commander wanted to see him for. He goes to sleep with a smile on his face for the first time since he’d been taken to Purgatory.

The next morning he gets ready to meet Jo for their daily shopping. He can’t wait to tell her about last night. He can also let her know that his Alpha is traveling to D.C. He’s not sure if that information will help at all, but she did say to tell her anything he can about the Commander. Dean assumes his travel plans would count.

As he steps out of the house and into the courtyard he sees Castiel open the door to the guest house and start to come down the stairs. He has gloves on like he’s about to do some gardening. By the time Dean makes it to the driveway, Castiel is down the stairs and walking right beside him. Dean can feel him looking over at him every once in a while as they walk down the long driveway. Does Castiel know about what he and the Commander did last night? About their illicit foray into the world of royal flushes and full houses? Does he care? Castiel turns to head towards the garden, but looks back at Dean one more time. Maybe he does care.

He sees Jo standing by the gate. Will she be surprised about the poker game? He knows she’d be proud that Dean let the Alpha win. He opens the gate and barely stops himself from gasping when the omega turns around and she isn’t Jo.

“Blessed be the womb,” the omega says with a smile.

“M-may the Great Alpha make me fruitful,” he stutters out the reply.

“You must be Ofal,” she says.

“Yeah…”

The omega smiles brightly. “Good!” She turns to start walking towards the grocery store, and Dean follows, his mind reeling. Where’s Jo?

“We’ve been sent good weather,” he mumbles.

“Which I thank the Great Alpha for,” the omega responds immediately.

They walk for a few moments in silence before Dean builds up the nerve to ask, “Has Ofmarv been transferred to a new posting so soon?”

The omega turns towards him. “I am Ofmarv.”

_Shit._


	5. Late

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know in a lot of ABO fics heats are when omegas are most fertile, but in this fic I'm making it so that omegas are fertile all the time. Rutting days are more important cause that's when Alphas are the most fertile. Heats only happen when an omega isn't pregnant, so the lack of a heat would be similar to someone missing their period.

Dean heard pieces of the story from Benny. Apparently the betas have their own communication networks. There was a black van, then a knock on the door, then a swift blow to the head to render her unconscious before she could even scream. The Guardians would have no mercy on a member of the resistance.

She left nothing behind. No note. No explanation. No clues to follow.

Jo is just gone.

Dean walks down the street with the new Ofmarv in uncomfortable silence. She seems just as dutiful and obedient as Jo used to seem before he got to know her. Is this omega acting too or is she a true believer? It’s impossible to tell. They walk past a Guardian standing still on the corner, machine gun at the ready even though there are absolutely no threats around. Of course there are no threats. Not when every Guardian owns a machine gun.

Dean’s finally awake to what’s going on now. He was asleep before. That’s how they let it happen. When cops started shooting the citizens they were sworn to protect, they didn’t wake up. When omegas’ rights to control their own bodies were revoked and gay marriage was re-criminalized, they didn’t wake up. When the President refused to step down after his term was over, they didn’t wake up. When men dressed in black marched into Congress and slaughtered everyone in sight, they didn’t wake up. When they blamed terrorists and suspended the Constitution, they didn’t wake up then either.

Everyone kept saying it would be temporary, but nothing changes instantaneously. There are always signs hidden to the naked eye. Red flags a person can only see in hindsight.

~ * ~

Dean and Charlie made it a point to get to the Astro Comics shop early that day. There was a new game coming out that they both wanted to buy before it was sold out. Dean knew he was probably going to be late to work, but it would be worth it. Charlie asked him to buy her a copy while she checked out the new selection of Funko Pop dolls in the display by the door.

Dean stepped forward to the counter and smiled at the man behind the register. He hadn’t seen him here before, but maybe he was new. “Hi, can I get two copies of the new Star Trek game?”

“Alright,” the man said in monotone. “It’s going to be $49.99.”

Dean put his credit card on the counter while he checked his phone. “Is Becky sick?” He asked. Becky was the girl who usually worked here whenever he and Charlie came by. She was a bit enthusiastic, but he’d actually grown fond of her over time.

“Who?” The man at the counter asked. How could he work here and not know Becky? She basically runs this place. “Sorry, your card was declined.”

“That’s not possible,” Dean said. “I just deposited my paycheck yesterday.” Charlie came back then and flung her arm casually around his neck. “Do you have any cash?” Dean asked her.

“No, sorry,” she said.

“Can you try to run it again?” Dean held the card back out to the man with a small smile.

“Can you come back when you have money?” The man’s tone turned harsh.

Dean raised his eyebrows in shock. “Excuse me?” He asked.

“What is your problem, man?” Charlie asked. “Just run his card again.” The man’s eyes hardened, and Dean tugged at Charlie’s arm before she could get them into trouble. They’ll just have to come back the next time Becky is working.

“What’s _your_ problem?” The man asked, raising his voice in anger. “Fucking breeders, get the fuck out of here!”

Charlie’s and Dean’s jaws both dropped simultaneously. “What did you call us?” Dean asked, outraged.

“Did you just call us fucking breeders?” Charlie screeched. Then she lowered her voice to where it appeared calm, but Dean knew that meant her anger was hiding just beneath the surface. “Is this your first day or something? What’s your name?”

“Get out of here.” The man glared at them. 

Dean tugged on Charlie’s arm again. “Come on, let’s go.”

~ * ~

On the other side of the city that same day, Castiel was weaving through the traffic trying to get to the high school. He’d gotten a call a couple minutes ago that he needed to pick up Claire immediately. It had only been a week since he’d gotten another call, this one from the army letting him know that Jimmy had been killed.

He wasn’t cut out for this. He didn’t know how to be a father. He especially didn’t know how to be a father to a fourteen year old omega.

He’d been a bit estranged from his twin the past few years. Jimmy was patriotic and didn’t see the problems with the United States that were only getting worse. The moment the rebels had attacked Congress, Jimmy enlisted in the army. Castiel, on the other hand, leaned politically more towards the side of the rebels. That caused a lot of contention between the two of them. He hadn’t spoken to his twin in ages and then suddenly his niece was at his door.

He pulled up to the school and saw there was a crowd gathered outside. He parked the car and headed over to where everyone was standing. Children started walking out of the school holding all of their books while men dressed all in black stood by making sure the crowd stayed orderly. When Castiel got closer, he could tell that the men were holding guns. That instantly made him nervous.

“What’s going on here?” He asked the beta woman standing closest to him.

“You didn’t hear about the new law?” The woman asked. Castiel raised his eyebrows at her to show that he had no idea what she was talking about. “Omegas aren’t allowed to go to school anymore. Well women in general, but omegas especially.” _What?_

Castiel saw Claire’s curly blonde hair through the crowd and pushed his way over towards her. He could feel anger building up inside of him, and he wanted to make sure they were out of there before he let it out. It wouldn’t be good to get himself shot by these armed guards.

“Hey, bug,” he greeted her, ruffling her hair fondly. He could tell she was on the verge of tears. Her eyes were already red and puffy. She’d just recently presented as an omega and was having a hard time coming to terms with her status. This was going to make it even harder for her.

Claire is very headstrong and independent for someone who’s only fourteen. This situation didn’t seem fair to Castiel. He was sure there had to be some underlying reason for this new law, but the way in which it was being enacted seemed excessive and sudden. Everything would get back to normal soon. It might just take some time.

~ * ~

Dean drops his bag full of groceries off on the kitchen table the second he steps into the house. For the first time since he’s been posted here, he’s actually glad to be back inside. He absolutely cannot stand his new walking partner.

He walks over to the table by the window where he keeps his blinders, puts them away, and then goes to pick up the groceries to take them in to Benny. The burly beta intercepts him before he can pick them up. “No, no! I’ll take that,” Benny says with a smile. Weird. “I’ve got your lunch all ready.” He motions for Dean to sit down at the table. He even pulls the chair out for him, giving him another smile before taking the groceries into the kitchen to put them away. Dean sits down and tries to figure out what’s going on. Benny isn’t usually a ray of sunshine, especially not in the morning. A few seconds later he comes back holding two plates. On one is a sandwich that smells amazing, and on the other is a small assortment of cheese and crackers. Benny stands by the table looking at Dean with that same smile on his face like he’s expecting him to say something.

“Thanks,” Dean says uncertainly. Normally he only gets soup and bread for lunch. He’s officially starting to freak out.

“Oh, I forgot,” Benny says and rushes back into the kitchen. He comes back with another plate. “I made brownies for dessert.”

Dessert is dessert, except here it has to mean something. What it means is the question. “It looks delicious,” Dean says, his voice shaking.

“Oh,” Benny runs off to the kitchen again and comes back holding a small vase with a single pink rose in it. It’s the same color as the roses in the garden. “I wouldn’t want to forget this,” he says with another smile. _Fuck_.

Benny is still standing next to the table like he’s waiting for some sort of recognition from Dean, only Dean doesn’t know what he’s looking for. “It’s beautiful,” he says quietly.

“Mistress Abbadon picked it herself.”

“She picked it for me?” Dean asks in shock.

“For good luck I’m sure,” Benny explains. “We’re all so hopeful.”

Dean is getting more confused the longer this conversation goes on. “Hopeful?”

Benny lowers his voice into a whisper. “You haven’t asked for your heat suppressors yet this month,” he says. “I know you’re only a few days late, but can you imagine? A pup! Wouldn’t it be wonderful?”

Mistress Abbadon walks inside from the garden then. She immediately comes over to the table. “It’s a beautiful day today, isn’t it?” She says, and Benny nods. “Ofal, how was your walk?”

“Very nice, thank you,” Dean replies.

“How do you feel?” She asks, staring at him steadily.

He looks down and tries to process the question. “Fine…”

“Are you nauseous? Are your breasts tender?” Mistress Abbadon continues. He almost chuckles at that because he’s flat as a board. He’d assume that alone would make people realize he’s a male omega, but they’re so rare that people just assume he has small breasts.

“No,” he responds instead. “Not that I’ve noticed.”

“It would be too early for all of that,” Benny explains and Mistress Abbadon nods.

“Is the cake for Mrs. Abel ready yet?” Mistress Abbadon asks Benny.

“Yes, I just have to wrap it.”

“Well then it’s not ready yet, is it?” Mistress Abbadon snaps. Benny’s smile finally drops off of his face, and he returns to his usually grumpy self as he goes back to the kitchen. Mistress Abbadon sits down at the table next to Dean who still hasn’t taken a single bite of the elaborate lunch that’s been prepared for him. “I’m going to go visit baby Anael today, would you like to come with me?” She asks. He knows he doesn’t really have a choice, and he’d never turn down an opportunity to leave the house anyways so he nods. “It’d be nice to have a change of scenery, wouldn’t it?” She asks.

“Yes,” Dean replies, his voice soft. “I’d like that very much, Mrs. Rolston.”

“Good,” she smiles at him. “Well, I need to go clean up.” She points to her dirty hands and dress. She must’ve been planting something this morning. “Make sure you eat all of your lunch. You’re eating for two now, after all.”

When she walks away Dean looks after her, perplexed. If he’d known that a late heat would prompt this kind of pleasant treatment, he would’ve delayed asking for his suppressors sooner. Of course he has no idea if he’s actually pregnant. This could become a problem.

~ * ~

An hour later they’re sitting in the Abels’ large living room. Dean is the only omega here, but there are a few wives sitting around gushing over how cute Anael is. He sits off to the side of the room to stay out of the way. Some of the wives looked annoyed when he came in with Mrs. Rolston, but they were too tactful to ask why he’s here in front of him.

Right now Mrs. Rolston is taking her turn holding the pup in her arms. One of the other wives remarks, “You look really comfortable like that, Abbadon.” She hadn’t told the other wives that Dean might be expecting, but they are always hopeful for each other’s omegas to get pregnant. Mistress Abbadon looks over her shoulder at him and then gets up to head his way.

“Ofal, would you like to hold her?” Mistress Abbadon asks before handing him the pup. He’s shocked she’d even ask, but he gives her a little nod. “Here she is.” She gently passes Anael to him, and he makes sure to support her head with his arm. It’s been so long since he’s held a pup, and his heart feels full but also like it’s breaking at the same time.

“Do you think that’s a good idea?” One of the wives asks.

Mistress Abbadon shushes her and kneels down to get closer to Dean’s level since he’s sitting. “Ofal knows how. She’s done it before.” She smiles at him, “Isn’t Anael beautiful?”

Dean smiles down at the pup and gently rocks her in his arms. This may be the first time he’s been genuinely happy since getting out of Purgatory. It might be his omega instincts, but whenever he holds a pup in his arms it just feels so right. He can feel Mistress Abbadon watching him, but he doesn’t acknowledge her. It seems like some sort of bond might be forming between the two of them now, and Dean isn’t sure how he feels about that.

The moment is ruined when one of the wives comes over and snatches the pup away from him. As she walks back to the center of the room where the rest of the wives are, Dean can hear her say quietly, “Let’s get you away from there.” He tries his best not to roll his eyes.

Mrs. Abel comes into the room then saying apologetically, “I’m sorry I’m late, I’m sure you’re all starving.”

“We’ve just been enjoying some time with your beautiful pup,” Mistress Abbadon says with a smile.

“She’s lovely now, but at three in the morning not so much,” Mrs. Abel says with a tired sigh as she sits down. A beta comes over to her and hands her a cup of coffee. “I don’t think I’d survive without my coffee.” She nods at the beta who retreats to the other side of the room.

“What happened to your hand?” Mistress Abbadon asks her. Dean looks up and can see that there’s a red mark on Mrs. Abel’s hand. It looks like it could be blood.

“Oh, it’s nothing,” she stirs cream and sugar into her coffee. “Anael finished her breakfast earlier, so I was picking her up and that girl… that ungrateful girl snapped at me.” Dean can feel himself freeze. What had Claire done?

“She bit you?” One of the other wives asks, appalled.

Mrs. Abel nods and the other wives gasp in horror. “You know how omegas get,” Mrs. Abel says. “I’m just counting down the days until Anael is weaned and that girl is out of my house for good.”

The wives continue to talk, and Dean decides now is a good time for him to sneak upstairs and try to speak to Claire. He’s going to have to tell her that she can’t behave that way. She’s being treated nicely right now because she just had a pup, but she could still get in a lot of trouble for hurting her Mistress.

He finds his way back to Claire’s bedroom upstairs. Since he spent all day here for the birthing, he remembers where it is. He knocks on the door and hears Claire’s light voice reply, “Come in!” Dean opens the door and sees Claire sitting crisscrossed on her bed in her sleep clothes. When she sees that it’s him, her face lights up in that smile again. “Hey D! Did you see my baby? Isn’t she beautiful?”

“She’s so beautiful,” Dean says, walking over to sit next to her on the bed. “How are you feeling?”

Claire doesn’t answer him. “She looks like me,” she gushes happily.

Dean smiles at her for a second but then becomes serious. “Uh Claire, did you bite Mrs. Abel?” Claire looks down at her hands in embarrassment. “You can’t do that,” he tells her.

“Well she’s a bitch!” Claire laughs.

Dean smiles because he agrees with her, but he needs to make sure she understands that it could be dangerous for her if she keeps acting out. “Claire, you can’t…”

“No, you don’t understand,” Claire interrupts him. “She’s always grabbing Amelia. She just grabs at her! I told her I was still feeding her, and she wasn’t finished, but she just took her from me.”

“Amelia?” He asks.

“That’s her real name,” Claire replies, looking down again. “That was my mother’s name, but she passed away a long time ago so I wanted to name my baby after her.”

Dean doesn’t reply to that. He pauses for a second and tries again. “Claire, you cannot bite people, okay?”

Claire looks up at him with a smile. “Can I tell you a secret?”

“Sure,” Dean says with a smile.

“I can do anything I want,” Claire whispers. “I had a pup!” She gets up in excitement. “I had a healthy one, so they let me do anything I want! They give me ice cream.” She looks out her window wistfully and then turns around quickly towards him again. “Would you like some?”

“I’d love some ice cream,” Dean chuckles.

“Okay, let’s go get some!” She starts walking towards her bedroom door but then stops. “Can I tell you another secret?”

“Mhmm,” he says.

“You can’t tell anyone, okay?” Claire sounds a bit nervous this time, and Dean starts to get concerned.

“I won’t.”

“He’s in love with me,” Claire giggles. “He loves me so much!” She covers her mouth to try and quiet her giggles.

Dean’s heart sinks. “Who loves you?”

“Him,” Claire whispers, pointing towards the door. “My Alpha!”

“He loves you?” Dean asks in a monotone.

“He loves me, and he loves Amelia,” Claire puts her hand over her heart. “We’re going to run away together. We’re going to be a real family!”

This isn’t good. There’s no way that powerful Alpha Commander Michael gives a flying crap about Claire. He knotted her to get a pup, and he might be fucking her on the side like some Alphas do, but he doesn’t love her. There’s no way he’d leave this mansion and his upper class position to go on the run with a fifteen year old omega and brand new baby. She’s probably just creating this fantasy romance in her mind to cope with the trauma of being repeatedly raped and watching her pup get taken from her. Either that or he has been promising these things to get some action on the side.

Dean licks his lips while he tries to think of what he can say to head this off at the pass. “Did he tell you that?”

Claire’s smile drops off her face. “You don’t have to believe me, but it’s true. He loves me.” Dean gives her a soft smile. He can’t take this fantasy away from her. She’s lost too much as it is, but he is concerned that if she continues acting out she might get sent to The Empty.

Claire’s smile returns quickly. “Come on, let’s go get that ice cream!” She excitedly skips out of the room, and Dean allows his face to fall. He feels his eyes welling up, but he can’t cry right now. He needs to be here for Claire in whatever way he can. She has nobody here.

When they’ve finished with their ice cream, Dean walks back downstairs. He hopes that Mistress Abbadon didn’t notice his long absence. Unfortunately when he gets to the bottom of the stairs he sees a beta helping her with her overcoat and holding up his own red one towards him.

“Did you have fun?” She asks. Her tone isn’t accusatory, but Dean is still guarded. He hadn’t asked permission to go spend time with Claire.

“Yes, thank you,” he replies.

“Did you get a chance to talk to your friend?” Mistress Abbadon asks.

Dean looks down at the ground. “I’m sorry. I should’ve asked your permission first.”

“It’s okay,” she says. “I’m sure you two have loads to talk about these days.” She’s referring to his possible pregnancy of course. He doesn’t feel pregnant, but then again it’s only been a few days since the knotting. “How is Ofmichael doing?”

“I’m afraid she might be struggling a bit,” he tries to say as diplomatically as possible. That’s an understatement.

“It happens sometimes with the weaker omegas,” Mistress Abbadon says quietly. “What you do… what we do together is so terrible, but we have to stay strong.” She takes a step closer to him. “That’s why I'm so grateful to have you.” She strokes his cheek gently. Dean isn’t sure what to respond to that, but he's saved from having to come up with something when baby Anael starts crying loudly from the other room. “I think Mrs. Abel might need some help. Tell Castiel that I’ll have the Abels’ driver take me home.” She walks down the hallway towards the sound of the crying and leaves him there alone.

~ * ~

Castiel pulls up to the Abel’s huge mansion and tries his best to control his breathing. He knows this is where Claire is posted, but he’s never been on the property before. He’s also not allowed to go inside. If anyone were to find out that he’s Claire’s uncle, it could be disastrous. Normally they try to post the omegas in areas where they don’t have any family nearby for obvious reasons. They don’t want the omegas to be surrounded by anyone from their past. By anyone who could potentially help them escape.

He’s been trying his best to keep tabs on Claire and how she’s doing, but it’s difficult to ask questions about another house’s omega and not seem overly interested.

When Ofal steps into the car, he doesn’t acknowledge her. After his meeting with Azazel the other night, he realized he needs to clamp down on whatever these feelings he’s forming are. He can’t afford them right now. It’s not safe.

Castiel can feel her looking towards him from the backseat, but he doesn’t say anything as he starts to pull out of the Abels’ ridiculously large driveway. After they’ve driven a few blocks in complete silence, he hears Ofal’s soft voice come from behind him. “Have you seen the Abels’ baby? She’s really cute.” Castiel feels like there’s a knife in his lung, making it hard to breathe. He’s not sure what his voice would sound like if he were to reply, so he stays quiet. “I love pups,” Ofal says, and Castiel glances in the rearview mirror to see that she’s turned away from him and is staring out of the window.

They drive in silence for a couple more minutes. In close quarters like this, Castiel starts noticing Ofal’s mouthwatering leather and whiskey aroma. He never should’ve scented her. It’s making everything harder.

“Did you know Ofmarv is gone?” Ofal’s voice is a bit firmer this time, but still light and airy. Castiel wants to go so far as to think her voice is cute, but he’s not going to do that. “Did you?” She asks again, but he keeps staring directly ahead at the road. “You told me she was dangerous. What did you mean?”

She’s obviously not going to let this go. Castiel sighs and finally turns back to look at her. “You need to remember something,” he says harshly. He has to be firm or he isn’t going to be able to get through this. “You can’t change anything about this. Anything you do will lead to the same ending, so there’s no point in trying to be strong or brave.” He sees her face harden in the rear view mirror. Castiel turns onto their street before he continues. “Everybody breaks. Everybody.”

He holds eye contact with her for a bit longer since there are no other cars on the street. That spark is still there in those absurdly green eyes. He thinks he’s starting to become obsessed with that spark, but he needs her to let it go. It’s too dangerous.

He turns into the Rolstons’ driveway where he knows a black van will be parked. He can almost feel Ofal tense up when she sees it. “Castiel, what’s going on?” She asks. She doesn’t sound scared yet, just confused.

“Tell them everything,” Castiel says flatly.

She turns to glare at him. “Cas!”

He steadfastly ignores the way that new nickname makes his heart flutter behind his ribs. There will be time to analyze that later. “Whatever they want to know, just tell them.” He parks the car on the side of the black van and watches as two Guardians step towards his car accompanied by the older beta that he knows worked with the omegas at the training center.

Castiel can hear Ofal’s breathing picking up in the backseat, and he wonders if she’s starting to have a panic attack like she did that night on rutting day. “I couldn’t stop them,” he says quietly. “I’m sorry.”

He opens the door for her and watches as the Guardians take her into the house for questioning.


	6. The Interrogation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you guys for the well-wishes! My surgery went well, and I'm in recovery now. I still have lots of free time to write though, don't worry!

Dean stands in the Rolstons’ living room with his eyes focused on nothing, and he prays. He can’t remember the last time he prayed. Maybe he never has. Then again they say prayer is the last hope of a desperate man, and he truly is desperate right now.

_Please, Great Alpha, I don’t want pain. I don’t want to be strung up on the wall like a doll. I want to keep living. I will do whatever I have to do. I will sacrifice my freedom. I will behave. I will give my body up for the uses of others. I will repent. I will…_

The zap of the cattle prod against his collar bone shocks him out of finishing his silent prayer, and he flinches minutely. Aunt Naomi steps back from him but continues to hold up the cattle prod as a silent threat.

“I find that these conversations are easier for everyone if we’re all on the same page from the beginning,” the Guardian says in a calm voice as he sits on the living room couch. He has a clipboard and pen ready to begin taking notes during Dean’s interrogation. “Eyes up, omega.” Dean slowly raises his eyes up to look at the Guardian. He’s dressed all in black as they always are, but other than that there’s nothing remarkable about him. He looks like a normal person. “Good,” the Guardian continues. “Ofal, if you answer these questions honestly, this will all be very painless for you. Alright?”

“Yes sir,” Dean replies softly. He’s trying his best to keep still, but he feels like his entire body must be visibly shaking he’s so nervous.

“Good,” the Guardian nods. “That’s what we all want.” Aunt Naomi smiles at Dean encouragingly. She’s here to oversee the interrogation since she was the beta who trained him. “Ofmarv is your shopping partner, correct?”

“Yes sir,” Dean answers.

“And you used to walk with the previous omega posted at that house, correct?” The Guardian asks, and Dean nods. “You walked together every day?”

“Yes.”

“What did you and Ofmarv talk about on these walks?” The Guardian asks. His tone is conversational as if he’s asking questions to get to know someone on a first date. That’s almost creepier than if he was being outright hostile.

“We talked about our shopping,” Dean says quietly. “The weather.”

The Guardian jots down some notes on his clipboard. “Did you always walk straight to the store and then straight back home?”

Dean pauses for just a second before answering, “Yes.” When the Guardian doesn’t ask another question immediately, Dean figures he needs to add in something more substantial. “Sometimes we’d stop by the wall to pray.” He looks over towards Aunt Naomi who nods encouragingly at him again.

“Did you ever take the long way home?” The Guardian asks while he continues to write. “Did you ever walk by the river?”

_Shit_. “It’s pretty by the river,” Dean replies.

The Guardian looks up at him. “Yes, it’s nice.” He looks back down and writes some more. “Nice and private.” Dean feels his heart-rate begin to pick up. “What did you talk about when you walked by the river?”

“S-shopping,” Dean stutters. “And the weather.”

“Shopping and the weather,” the Guardian sighs and looks up to Aunt Naomi for help.

“Nothing else?” Aunt Naomi asks.

“Not that I can remember,” Dean says quietly.

Aunt Naomi takes a small step closer to him, but her voice stays calm. “Ofmarv is a beautiful omega, isn’t she?”

_What are they getting at?_ “I guess so,” Dean says, confused.

“In what way was she beautiful?” Aunt Naomi continues.

Dean looks back and forth between Aunt Naomi and the Guardian a couple times. He has no idea what they’re trying to get him to say. What could Jo’s looks have to do with her involvement in a resistance movement? “I d-don’t understand,” he says nervously.

“On these walks alone did you ever do anything more than talk?” The Guardian speaks up again.

“I’m sorry?” Dean is beyond confused at this point.

“My apologies, Ofal, this is a delicate topic.” The Guardian actually looks embarrassed. “Did she ever try to touch you?”

“No,” Dean shakes his head. “Never.”

“Did you know she was a gender-traitor?” Aunt Naomi asks. Dean feels his anger beginning to overtake his fear. Yes, he knew Jo was bisexual, just like he is bisexual. They are not abominations or ‘traitors’ to be exterminated or sent to The Empty. They are people.

“Yes,” Dean replies, voice tight.

He watches as Aunt Naomi’s face falls in disappointment. The Guardian’s voice is a bit less calm when he speaks again. “How did you know?”

“Because she mentioned her wife… from before,” Dean says, turning to look at him. “She just mentioned it in passing.”

“Why didn’t you report this to your Mistress?” Aunt Naomi asks harshly.

“I didn’t think about it,” Dean looks back down at the ground. Maybe if he appears contrite, they’ll believe him.

“You didn’t think about it?!” She screeches.

“Did she ever tell you she was having a sexual relationship with her household’s beta?” The Guardian asks.

Dean looks up again since this time he doesn’t have to lie. “No.”

The Guardian scribbles another note while Naomi continues, “But you knew she was an abomination.”

Dean narrows his eyes and stares directly at her. “I knew she was bi.” He can feel fire pumping through his veins with his anger. 

The effect of his words is instantaneous. Aunt Naomi glares at him before lunging forward to shock him again with the cattle prod. He knows what’s coming this time so he manages to keep his grunt of pain mostly quiet. She steps in closely enough to whisper to him. “Don’t use that word. That omega… that _thing_ was a disgrace to the Great Alpha.”

Dean doesn’t reply, he just looks back down at the ground. He can’t help noticing how they all keep using the past tense when they’re talking about Jo. Has she been killed? Has she been sent to The Empty?

“Why didn’t you report the conversation?” The Guardian asks.

Dean keeps his eyes down, but clenches his fists. “Because she was my friend,” he says angrily through clenched teeth.

He watches out of the corner of his eye as the Guardian nods towards Aunt Naomi. The older beta hits him on the side of the face with the cattle prod as hard as she can, and the blow causes him to fall over. Then she starts mercilessly shocking him. He screams as his body convulses in pain, but Naomi doesn’t stop.

He hears the sound of rushing footsteps come into the room and Mistress Abbadon yelling. “Stop it!”

The Guardian tries to pull her away. “Mrs. Rolston, this is a government matter.”

“Stop it! Ofal’s pregnant!” Mistress Abbadon leans over him, shielding him from Aunt Naomi and the Guardian. The shocking stops immediately, and Dean sucks in a lungful of air in relief. He sees Castiel standing in the living room doorway, but he can’t make out the expression on his face through the tears in his eyes. He closes his eyes as Mistress Abbadon holds him and continues to sob that he’s pregnant.

“This is wondrous news!” The Guardian exclaims. “May the Great Alpha aid you in this endeavor to bring forth His blessed miracle!” If Dean wasn’t in so much pain right now he’d probably roll his eyes, but as it is he’s having a difficult time even opening them. “We have all the information we need.”

“Get out of my house!” Mistress Abbadon says furiously while she continues to hold him. Dean’s still gasping for breath, but the pain is slowly starting to pass. He opens his eyes and looks towards where Castiel is standing in the doorway. As the Guardian follows Aunt Naomi from the room, Dean sees him give Castiel a slight nod. That’s the last thing he sees before he passes out.

~ * ~

The streets of Seattle were packed with people of all ages and gender designations. After the new law got passed prohibiting omegas from being allowed to own property, work, or go to school there were protests in every major city in the United States. Police decked out in full riot gear stood on the edges of the crowd. They tried to push the protesters off the bridge where they were gathered, but nobody would budge. Some protesters wore costume masks or face coverings to disguise their identities and others held up signs with slogans on them about omega’s rights.

Charlie and Dean have gone to the protests every day since they started. Sam wanted to come too, but Dean told him to stay back home to take care of Krissy. Their eyes were still red from the tear gas that was shot into the crowd yesterday, but they weren’t going to stop. Nobody was. In the eyes of the government, omegas had no more rights. That meant they had nothing to lose.

The noise of the crowd drowned out the sound of the riot police yelling at them to clear the streets. “We are people, not objects!” Dean heard a group of omegas standing next to him yell. He and Charlie joined in, “Our bodies, our choice!”

Some of the people towards the front of the crowd started pushing against the barrier the police had set up. Others threw rocks at them that the police deflected with their clear shields. Things were starting to escalate in intensity. Dean and Charlie were standing towards the side of the street, but still in the thick of things. The barrier fell down and more people shoved against the line of police who started beating them down with their nightsticks. Another row of men stepped forward from behind the riot police. These men looked like they were part of the military and not regular police officers. They were dressed all in black and were holding up guns.

Dean knew they were probably going to start firing off rubber bullets into the crowd. That had been happening in other protests around the country and people on social media and in the news had been arguing about whether or not it was a proper way for these protests to be handled.

When the row of military men got in front of the police, Dean narrowed his eyes trying to see past all the bodies around him at what they were holding. Those weren’t rubber bullet guns. Those were machine guns! He gasped and grabbed Charlie’s arm to start pulling her away towards the side of the group. _They weren’t actually going to fire real bullets into a crowd of civilians were they?_ It looked like other protesters were thinking the same thing, because people started slowly backing away from the line of armed men. Some continued throwing things from further away, and everyone kept yelling and booing.

Dean and Charlie backed up off of the street portion of the bridge and onto the sidewalk next to it so they were a bit further away. When the crowd started booing even louder, they turned back around to join in. One shot rang out loud enough to be heard over the noise of the crowd, and Dean and Charlie ducked instinctively. Immediately several more shots were fired into the crowd. These men were actually shooting at American citizens! 

The crowd descended into a panic and tried to run away from the armed men who continued to shoot at them. Dean grabbed Charlie’s hand as the two of them started sprinting as fast as they could to the other side of the bridge. It was complete chaos. People screamed as they rushed through the crowd, others fell down after being shot and were trampled by people desperately trying to get away.

Dean heard something rocket past them, and then the edge of the bridge exploded. Now the men weren’t just shooting bullets into the crowd, they were also launching grenades! The force of the blast caused Dean to fall down. “Run! Run!” Charlie screamed, pulling him up. They made it to the edge of the bridge where the grenade had exploded, and Dean jumped over the broken bodies of two people who must’ve been hit. They couldn’t have been older than twenty.

Once Dean and Charlie got off of the bridge they ran down the street looking for any building they could hide in. The crowd was a bit thinner over here because most protesters were trapped on the bridge. If Dean hadn’t moved them to the sidewalk when he did, they might not have been able to get out of there.

Shots kept going off, and Dean heard bullets whizzing past them in the air. Other people were falling down around him after getting hit. Charlie yanked on his arm, dragging him towards the Astro Comics they’d gone to the other day when this whole mess started. Thankfully the door was unlocked, so they quickly ducked inside. The two of them ran towards the back of the empty store and hid behind a display with a bunch of comic books on it. They could still hear the sound of gunshots in the air, but they just held onto each other and closed their eyes.

After a few moments, the sounds of gunfire stopped abruptly. Dean continued holding onto Charlie while he listened to see if the firing would start up again. When it didn’t he slowly moved out from behind the display and crawled forward towards the window to see what was happening. The street appeared to be empty from what he could see at this angle.

He heard the sound of something big flying through the air and barely had time to throw himself to the ground. He wasn’t sure what it was, but it was much bigger than a grenade. The explosion outside on the street caused all of the windows and glass in the store to shatter. He covered his face with his hands, wincing as some of the shards cut open his skin.

After that big explosion it seemed to be finally over, but Dean stayed still on the ground as his breathing slowly returned to normal. Charlie came over to him and the two of them held onto each other, crying as it sank in just how close to death they'd both come. 

~ * ~

Dean wakes up on his bed. They must’ve brought him back up here after he passed out. The left side of his face is swollen and aches from where Aunt Naomi hit him with the cattle prod, and he can feel a burn mark on his collarbone from where he was shocked repeatedly.

He sits up slowly when he hears footsteps coming up the stairs towards his room. There’s a hesitant knock on the door, and then he hears Castiel’s low voice ask, “May I come in?”

Dean stands up. “Sure.” Castiel opens the door, but doesn’t step inside. “Hi,” Dean says quietly.

Castiel looks behind him to make sure nobody is around before stepping inside the room and closing the door. “I just wanted to check if you were okay,” he says gruffly. His blue eyes are full of concern.

“I’m fine, thank you,” Dean says softly. Castiel continues to look at him with a sad expression on his face, and Dean can’t stand to see him looking at him like that so he tries to make a joke. “Except for the weird guy who just snuck in my room.” Castiel huffs out a quiet laugh and smiles. They stare at each other for a few moments, and Dean hears what sounds like water droplets hitting the floor. “Why are you dripping?” He asks.

“I brought you some ice.” Castiel holds up a towel that must be filled with ice.

“Thank you,” Dean replies sincerely, touched by the gesture.

Castiel holds eye contact with him as he steps forward slowly. “I should’ve…” He clears his throat and looks down. Dean waits patiently for Castiel to finish what he was about to say. When he looks back up at him, his blue eyes are even more intense than usual. “I should’ve just driven away with you.” Dean is shocked by the fierceness of his tone. _Does Castiel really mean that? What does he mean by that?_ He doesn’t know what to say, so he just stands still and continues staring into Castiel’s eyes.

The older man steps forward into his personal space until he’s only about a foot away from him. Dean wishes again that the household staff wasn’t forced to wear scent blockers because he wants nothing more than to be able to finally scent him.

Castiel holds the towel full of ice up to the burn mark visible on Dean’s collarbone. He gasps slightly when the cold ice comes in contact with his aching skin and watches as Castiel’s pupils dilate. The beta slowly leans forward and rests his forehead against his own. Dean closes his eyes and feels himself relax. He’s not sure what it is about Castiel, but he feels safe with him. Protected somehow.

He feels Castiel move away just enough to place a kiss on his forehead. Dean opens his eyes and sees that Castiel looks surprised almost like he hadn’t meant to do that. Dean smiles softly at him because he doesn’t think he’d be able to use words right now. He’s never been good at expressing his feelings, but he does know that he didn’t mind Castiel kissing him. He tilts his head to the side in invitation, because actions speak louder than words anyways.

Castiel’s eyes widen fractionally, but then he quickly leans forward to scent Dean again. He rubs his nose along Dean’s neck slowly and groans when he finds Dean’s scent gland. Dean shivers as he feels Castiel’s mouth replace his nose. The older man begins placing light kisses under Dean’s ear, and he can’t stop himself from whimpering slightly in response. “Cas,” he whines, reaching out with his hands to find some part of him to grab onto. His hands find Castiel’s sharp hipbones, and he holds on for dear life.

Dean feels Castiel suck gently on his scent gland, and his hands tighten on the man’s hips. Castiel groans again, “Ofal, what are you doing to me?” He rests his head on Dean’s shoulder briefly before pulling away. Dean opens eyes again and sees that Castiel’s are darkened with lust. Dean wants nothing more than to kiss him, but that would probably be a bad idea. They’re already crossing way too many lines as it is.

Castiel must think the same thing because he takes a deep breath and gently hands the ice to Dean before walking towards the door. He stops at the door and turns back around looking like he’s about to say something, but he just sighs and leaves the bedroom closing the door behind him.

Dean shakily sits back down on his bed. His neck is still tingling, and he feels himself slicking slightly from just that simple touch. He is so screwed.

~ * ~

The heat cramps wake Dean up early the next morning, and he rolls onto his side groaning in pain. His sleep clothes are soaked through with slick, and he feels feverish. He needs to get downstairs to Benny to get his suppressants, but he doesn’t know if he has the ability to move right now. Another wave of cramps rolls through him, and he clutches his stomach. He’s torn between being glad he’s not pregnant and terrified of what’s going to happen when Mistress Abbadon finds out he’s not pregnant.

He hears footsteps coming up the stairs, and he hopes it’s not Castiel. Another rush of slick pours out of him at the thought of what might happen if Cas were to get a whiff of him right now. He seems to really like Dean’s scent. He moans pitifully. Now is not the time for illicit fantasies.

“Ofal, why haven’t you come down for your breakfast?” Benny asks from outside the door. Dean sighs in relief that it’s him and not Castiel, but part of him is disappointed. Benny opens the door. “Shit! I’ll be right back!” Dean hears him run back down the stairs probably to get the suppressants, and he pinches his eyes closed as another wave of cramps hits him.

When Benny gets back a minute later, he hands Dean a glass of cold water and his suppressants. Benny doesn’t say anything, but Dean can read everything that’s unsaid on his face anyways. Sadness that he isn’t pregnant. Relief that he isn’t pregnant. It’s the same juxtaposition that Dean’s feeling right now.

Benny sits with him while they wait for the medicine to take effect. Eventually the cramps have subsided enough to where Dean can go clean himself up in his bathroom. When he comes back into the room, he sees Benny working on removing the dirty sheets from his bed. He blushes in embarrassment, but Benny doesn’t seem to mind. Since he’s a beta, he’s not affected as strongly by the smell.

Dean’s brain screeches to an instant halt when a thought hits him. Castiel is also a beta, and he’s definitely very affected by his scent. The first time Dean could pass it off as surprise, but not twice. _Is Castiel actually an Alpha? If he is, why is he pretending to be a beta?_

“It’s okay, Ofal,” Benny says, mistaking whatever emotions are playing across Dean’s face right now for just embarrassment. “I don’t mind.”

“Thanks, Benny,” he says quietly. Benny nods and starts to leave the bedroom, but this could be Dean’s only chance to figure out what happened to Ofmarv. He needs to at least ask if the beta knows anything. “Wait, Benny!” Benny turns back around to face him. “What happened to Ofmarv?”

Benny lowers his voice to a whisper. “She’s being corrected right now, but then she’ll receive a new posting.” Dean’s stomach turns at the idea of what her being ‘corrected’ might entail, but at least that means she’s still alive. “The beta she was with was executed.” Dean can see un-shed tears in Benny’s eyes. He wonders if they knew each other. 

“I’m sorry, Benny.” He doesn’t really know what else to say. Benny just gives him a sad smile and leaves the room.

Dean knows he needs to go downstairs to tell Mistress Abbadon that he’s not pregnant, but he’s terrified of what might happen. He knows that in this society, all omegas are good for is bearing pups, and if he doesn’t fulfill his biological duties he could be sent to The Empty. Staying here and worrying about it isn’t going to solve anything though. He sighs and slowly starts heading down the back stairs to look for his Mistress. His room is situated in what probably used to be an attic. It’s a small room with an even smaller bathroom and closet attached to it. At least he has his own bathroom.

When he gets down to the second floor, he hears Mistress Abbadon talking to someone. He starts heading in the direction of her voice and almost runs into Castiel who is carrying a box full of something. Castiel sets the box down in the hallway and gives him an indecipherable look before heading back into the room he came out of.

Dean can see that Mistress Abbadon is inside the room with her back facing away from him. She must sense that he’s there though because she turns around to face him with a smile. “Ofal! Blessed day. Please come in.” Dean waits for Castiel to bring another box into the hall before he steps around him and into the room. “I know that we’re still in such early stages, but I’ve been wanting to clean this room out for a while.” _Fuck_. “Isn’t this a perfect place for a nursery?” She asks him with a smile.

“Mrs. Rolston…”

Mistress Abbadon grabs his hands between hers, and Dean can see Castiel watching them in his peripheral vision. “I want to tell you something,” she says quietly. “Alistair and I tried for so long…” She pauses while Castiel grabs a final box and apologizes for the interruption as he leaves the room. “It was hard to keep faith,” she continues, “But here you are! My little miracle.” Abbadon leans down and gently kisses his hand that she’s still holding. “My beautiful miracle.”

Dean feels his face twitch while he tries to force out the words that he knows will most definitely ruin the moment. “Mrs. Rolston,” he whispers. “I’m not pregnant.” He watches as the smile slips off of her face like dirty water down a kitchen sink drain.

“What?”

“I got my heat this morning,” Dean explains.

Her face hardens, and her hand finds his wrist in a painful grip. She drags him forcibly out of the room, and Dean looks up to see Castiel standing in the hallway staring towards him sadly. He must either have heard their conversation or is able to guess why Mistress Abbadon has suddenly flown into a rage. Since Abbadon is an Alpha she’s able to easily drag him up the stairs as he tries to keep up with her. When they get back to his room, she forcibly flings him into it, and he falls down onto the ground with a pained cry.

“You are not allowed to leave this room, do you understand me?” Dean is too shocked to reply or try to stand up so he stays quiet. He hears Abbadon’s heels on the floor as she runs into his room and gets down on the floor next to him. “DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME??”

“Yes, Mrs. Rolston,” he says quietly. The tears falling from his eyes make the same dripping noise on the wood floor as Castiel’s melting ice had the night before.

He doesn’t look up, but he can hear Mistress Abbadon stand back up and walk towards his door. “Remember that things can get much worse for you,” she threatens and then slams the door. Dean collapses back onto the floor and sobs.


	7. Time-Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been having a pretty hard time recently, but writing and reading fanfic provides a good temporary escape. Huge thanks to everyone who has been reading and commenting on my fics! Every time I see that I've gotten a new comment I smile. Hope you're enjoying the story, and I'll try to update again soon

Dean watched from the sidelines as Sam spun Krissy around in circles. He had her firmly in his arms, but Dean was still nervous that he’d drop her accidentally. He kept trying to reach in to grab her, but then would stop himself when he saw the complete joy on her face. Krissy screeched when Sam tossed her in the air gently before catching her again. Sam must’ve seen him flinch because he rolled his eyes, “Chill, Dean. I’ve got her.”

Dean sat down next to one of the trees in the park they were visiting. They usually came here because it was just a couple streets away from their apartment. Krissy loved taking walks to the park, and Dean enjoyed feeling the crisp fall air against his skin. He leaned his back up against the rough bark of the tree, but instead of feeling uncomfortable he felt content. He glanced up towards the orange and yellow leaves above him while he listened to his daughter’s joyful laughter.

He didn’t notice, but he must’ve started dozing off because suddenly his arms were full with his excited pup. “Daddy! Did you see how high I went? Did you see?” Krissy asked excitedly.

“Sure did, kiddo!” Dean laughed and gave her a quick kiss on the forehead.

Krissy lightly poked him on the arm, “Tag, you’re it!”

They spent the next thirty minutes laughing and chasing each other around the park. To the other people enjoying their Sunday afternoon outdoors they probably looked like a typical family unit: Alpha, omega, and pup. If only they knew.

~ * ~

He has to stop daydreaming about the past. If he lets himself fall in too far, he won’t have the strength to climb back out.

He’s still banished to his room. Twelve days so far.

His door is closed but unlocked. The lock was removed before he got here. Maybe it was a response to something the Ofal before him did or maybe it was a preventative measure. There’s no way for Dean to know for sure. The first week he left the door cracked open a couple inches so he would be able to hear what was happening downstairs, but listening and not being able to participate is actually worse. This week his door has remained shut except for the three times a day when Benny comes in to bring up his food.

Right now Dean is kneeling on the floor staring out his window. It’s self-inflicted torture. The window is even worse than the cracked door. He can see people moving around outside, living their lives while he’s stuck in this room like a child in time-out. He sighs when he watches the new Ofmarv take off down the street with Benny. The beta has been forced to do Dean’s shopping while he’s been locked away in this room. It’s not safe for an omega to walk alone. Dean can’t believe he misses those stilted conversations about the weather with brainwashed Ofmarv. He wants nothing more at this moment than to be let outside for a simple shopping trip.

Dean tries for the millionth time to open his window, but it’s been sealed shut. He knows he can’t escape, but he just wants some fresh air. The scent of his loneliness hangs around him like thick humidity after a summer rain. He pulls his gaze away from the window and leans with his back up against the wall. He can’t look outside anymore. It hurts too much.

Directly across from where he’s sitting is the door to his closet. He’s gotten well acquainted with his room in the last twelve days he’s been stuck in it, but he hasn’t spent as much time in the closet yet. He slowly crawls across the wooden floor towards it. Walking would be way too difficult right now. He does have to get up to open the door and turn on the light though. After that’s done he sinks back down to the ground in between the identical hanging red dresses that make up his entire wardrobe. He didn’t used to have much opinion about colors, but he can safely say now that he hates the color red.

His eye catches on something on the wall down by the floor in the corner. Dean leans over to get a closer look. It looks like writing. He lays down on the floor of the closet to give him room to inspect it better. Since he’s so tall he has to position his feet to where they’re sticking out of the closet doorway. He runs his fingers lightly across the words that have been carved into the wood paneling of the wall. They’ve been painstakingly written, but Dean has no idea what they say. _Anfangen ist leicht, beharren eine Kunst_. It looks German. Maybe Sammy would know, but Dean has no clue.

Someone took the time to carve this in here where nobody would ever see it. Was it Ofal? The one who came before him?

~ * ~

Dean could hear Charlie making some sort of scraping sound in the bathroom stall next to him. Since he was the only male omega in Purgatory, he didn’t get a separate bathroom. He had to share with the girls.

“What are you doing?” Dean hissed quietly at her and then leaned forward to try and see through the small crack in the partition between their stalls.

“I found this in the toilet,” Charlie held up a thin piece of metal. “It’s pretty sharp.” Dean huffed in annoyance. “What?” She stopped her scraping to ask him.

“We’re going to be posted soon,” he said quietly.

“Posted,” Charlie said in a mocking tone. “You sound like Aunt Baloney.”

“We have to get out of here,” Dean sighed when he heard Charlie go back to scratching.

“Posted… sounds like some sort of forced surrogacy or something,” Charlie muttered.

“That’s just what Bela heard,” Dean whispered back, trying to calm himself down as well as her. “She’s a drama queen. You can’t trust what she says.”

He heard Charlie exhale a sarcastic laugh. “Probably going to force us to take a turkey baster full of old Alpha jizz up our vaginas, or other parts,” she said quietly, referring to Dean being a freak of nature. He blushed. Of course Charlie didn’t see him that way, but Dean saw himself that way. “Pray for us to pop out a pup for the Motherland. Sounds awesome.” Dean didn’t know what to reply to that so he stayed quiet listening to Charlie continuing to do whatever it was she was doing. “Do you spell Naomi with just an ‘i’ or is there also an ‘e’ at the end?” Charlie asked seriously.

“Stop that!” Dean hissed. “If someone sees you writing that you could lose a hand! It’s not worth it.”

Dean watched as Charlie moved to look at him through the crack in the wall. “Yes it is,” she said firmly. “After we get out of here, there’s going to be another omega that comes in here and reads this. It’ll help them know they’re not alone.”

The bathroom door opened abruptly, and the two omegas immediately got quiet. “Charlie!” A woman shouted, “you’ve been in there long enough. Out!”

“Just a second Aunt Hester,” Charlie replied meekly, but Dean could see through the crack in the wall that she was holding up her middle finger in the general direction of the angry beta. “It’s my cramps.” Dean watched as she quickly put back the metal piece of the toilet that she’d been using to vandalize the bathroom stall.

“Now!” Aunt Hester shouted and then slammed the door behind herself. Charlie shot a wink through the crack at Dean and went to follow the beta before she’d get in trouble. Dean stepped out of his stall and into the one Charlie had been in. He wanted to read what she’d carved into the wood.

_Aunt Naomi sux!_ Dean had to fight his smile the rest of the way back to his next training session.

~ * ~

Dean runs his fingers again across the unknown words carved into the wall and sends out a quick thought for the omega who came before him. He knows she had to be brave to do this, so whatever it means, he’s grateful.

He closes his eyes and listens to the sound of the rain that just started. Since he’s in the attic he can easily hear the calming pitter-patter on the roof. He wishes he could stand outside in that rain and feel the drops against his skin and smell the crispness of the air. He misses that wet, earthy smell that accompanies a good rain.

He hears footsteps on the stairs, but can’t find the energy to sit up. It’s only Benny bringing up his lunch anyways. He’s surprised Benny is back from the shopping trip so soon, but maybe he’d seen that it was about to rain and hurried back home. He hears Benny open the door to his bedroom and immediately drop the tray of food he was holding. Dean barely hears Benny’s shocked gasp over the sound of dishes shattering against the floor. He sits up quickly and sees that it’s actually Castiel, not Benny. He’s pale and looks completely panicked.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Castiel whispers harshly. “I thought you were dead or something.”

“Sorry,” Dean says as he moves to get up and help Castiel pick up the shards of ceramic littering his bedroom floor.

“What were you doing laying down in the closet?” Castiel asks suspiciously.

Dean stares at Castiel for a second, trying to think of a believable explanation that doesn’t involve revealing the secret message the previous Ofal had left for him. “Uh…”

Castiel sighs, but looks at him with an expression that can only be described as fondness. “You are one strange omega,” he chuckles, and Dean blushes. He’s not sure if Castiel means it in a good way or not. They continue to pick up pieces of broken dishes in silence for a few moments. Every once in a while their hands accidentally touch, and each time it feels like a shock against his skin. “Want to hear something I just found out?” Castiel asks.

Dean looks up into his blue eyes. They’re lit up in excitement like he can’t wait to share whatever it is. Dean nods. Castiel could tell him he wanted to read the dictionary to him at this point, and he would soak up every word. Not only is Dean becoming quickly obsessed with his gravelly voice, but he also is grateful for the companionship, however brief it will be.

“A beta escaped from the New York City Purgatory Center,” Castiel leans closer to Dean so he can hear him whisper. There’s nothing inherently sexual about it, but having the older man this close to him still makes him shiver. “She was able to escape to Canada and gave an interview about what’s going on at the Training Centers.”

Dean pulls away to look at him in shock. Maybe if the word gets out what’s happening down here some other countries will help what’s left of the United States take back control of the country. He feels something resembling hope begin to bloom in his chest, and he has to quickly squash it. Hope only leads to disappointment.

“Ofal?” Castiel asks hesitantly. “Is what they’re saying true?”

“How would I know what they’re saying?” Dean replies frostily. His tone is a bit harsher than he’d intended it to be, but sometimes it’s like Castiel knows everything about everyone and sometimes he seems utterly clueless to the way things work.

“The things the beta said sounded...” Castiel takes a deep breath before he continues, “Was Purgatory as bad as she’s saying it was?”

“Worse.” Dean doesn’t know what the beta is saying, but he does know for a fact that whatever a beta had to go through at a center would be a fraction of what an omega would witness.

Castiel looks genuinely sad to hear that, but he nods. Once they’ve finished picking up the pieces, Castiel grabs his hand to help pull him up. When Dean stands up they’re standing only a foot apart from each other. He can’t help but look down at Castiel’s slightly chapped lips, wondering what they’d feel like against his own. Because he’s busy looking down, it surprises him when he feels Castiel kiss his forehead again.

“What was that for?” Dean asks.

Castiel looks surprised at himself, as if they haven’t been steadily chipping away at the societal norms that dictate how they should behave every time they’re alone in the same room together. “You’re so strong, Ofal,” he says quietly. Dean doesn’t feel strong. If he was strong he wouldn’t be here. He can tell that Castiel knows he doesn’t believe him, but also knows that he won’t be able to convince him of it.

Dean changes the topic. “What are you going to tell them?” He motions towards the bedroom door. The clatter of all those dishes breaking had to have been heard downstairs. He’s honestly surprised nobody came rushing up to check on them. If Benny were here, he probably would’ve.

Castiel thinks for a moment. “You were feeling faint, and I found you passed out.”

Dean nods. That’s as good as an excuse as any. Plus maybe if they think he’s sick, they’ll let him go see a doctor. That would give him a chance to leave this fucking room even if it’s just for a little while.

After they’ve finished collecting all the broken remains of Dean’s breakfast, Castiel stands up and heads to the door. “I’ll bring you another tray,” he says. “Don’t do that again.” His voice is stern, but Dean can see a smile in his eyes.

~ * ~

Unfortunately Castiel has to walk through the Rolstons’ dining room to get back to the kitchen. Mr. and Mrs. Rolston are both sitting at the table eating breakfast, and they look up when he walks in carrying the tray of broken dishes.

“What did she do this time?” Mrs. Rolston asks in a harsh tone. Castiel thought the two of them had been getting along, but since Ofal’s heat things have been extra tense. The Alpha has forbid Ofal from leaving her room for almost two full weeks now. Technically even though the Commander has supreme authority over this house, duties are usually split up to where the wives take more control when it comes to domestic duties. In this instance Castiel wishes Alistair would step in though because he is unsure how much more isolation Ofal can take. She’d looked very pale when he saw her lying on the ground which is partly why he’d been so freaked out when he went into the room.

“She was on the ground, Mistress,” Castiel says with a straight face. “She said she fainted.” He doesn’t like lying, but sometimes it’s necessary. He has absolutely no idea what Ofal could’ve been doing on the ground in the closet like that, but after her interrogation a couple weeks ago, she should know to be more careful what she does.

“She fainted?” Commander Alistair asks with a touch of genuine concern in his voice. He’s still holding the morning paper in his hands, but his attention is totally focused on Castiel. He really seems to like this omega, and that’s concerning for a whole different reason.

“No,” Mistress Abbadon turns towards Alistair. “That’s what she _said_.” Maybe Castiel isn’t as good a liar as he thinks he is.

“Should I make an appointment for her to see a doctor?” Castiel asks, trying to be helpful.

“No,” Abbadon says. “She’ll be fine.”

Castiel really thinks Ofal should see a doctor because he’s worried that there could be something wrong with her for her to have been on the ground like that. He tries to think of a way to convince Abbadon to let him make the appointment without making it seem like he cares about Ofal, which he doesn’t of course. “Yes, Mistress,” he looks down at the tray, hesitating. “It is a rutting day though,” he reminds her.

Abbadon pauses with her fork raised to her mouth and stares at him for a few seconds. “Make the appointment,” she says.

“Yes, Mistress.”

Castiel steps away from them to take the broken dishes to the kitchen and assemble another tray for Ofal with a small smile on his face.

~ * ~

Dean puts on his boots in a hurry. Somehow Castiel did it! He’s actually being allowed to leave the room to go see the doctor. The hospital is on the other side of town so it’ll take him forty minutes to walk there. An hour if he walks slowly. Two hours of outside. Two hours of fresh fucking air. He smiles to himself in his excitement.

The sound of heels tapping up the stairs to the attic makes him look up. It's Mistress Abbadon. _What the fuck could she want?_

“You’re sick?” She asks when she steps into the room. Dean is surprised that she doesn’t sound angry. She sounds skeptical but still concerned.

“I just fainted, Mrs. Rolston,” Dean answers meekly.

“Alright,” she says, turning to walk away. “Hurry up, the car is waiting out front.”

“Wait, I can…” Dean starts.

Abbadon stomps her heel when she stops to turn back towards him. “What?” _Shit, she’s definitely still angry._ “You can what?”

“It’s not that far to the hospital,” Dean says diplomatically. Maybe if he phrases it as if he’s trying to save them the trouble of driving him, they’ll let him walk. “I can walk.”

“Don’t be silly,” Mistress Abbadon says. “It’s raining, and you’re sick. Now come on!”

Dean isn’t sure if she’s genuinely worried about his health or if she can call his bluff, but he sighs and follows her down to the car. The rain has picked up in its intensity so when he gets to the door, he sees that Castiel is holding up an umbrella for him to walk beneath. He feels a bit silly walking next to Castiel staying dry while the driver is getting soaked in the rain, but he guesses that’s his job. Castiel does walk closely enough to him that he can feel the older man’s warmth even through the layer of his thick cloak. Dean thinks he feels Castiel’s hand resting gently on his lower back, but the touch is so light it could be his imagination.

He takes as many lung-fulls of crisp autumn air as he can in the short distance down the sidewalk to where the car is parked. Castiel opens the back door for him, and he gets into the car immediately resting back against the plush seat. He looks up when Castiel gets into the driver’s seat. Mistress Abbadon opens the passenger side door and for a horrifying second Dean thinks she’s planning on accompanying them to the hospital. She just reaches inside the door to raise the partition up between Castiel and the backseat.

Dean knows it’s a power move to try and keep him isolated even during this short trip to the hospital, but it still pisses him off. How long is he going to have to pay for his body not getting pregnant? He looks towards Castiel to see what his reaction is, but the driver isn’t giving anything away. His face might as well be made of stone as he pulls out of the driveway and turns right down the street to head towards the hospital.

Dean leans his head back against the back seat and closes his eyes, letting the sound of the rain on the roof calm his racing thoughts.

~ * ~

The gym of whatever old high school the new regime had converted into the Purgatory Training Center was set up for their next lesson with a circle of beds in the middle of the otherwise empty room. The omegas filed into the room in an orderly fashion all looking around in confusion at what could be in store for them today.

“Alright girls,” Aunt Naomi said in her obnoxiously cheerful voice. “Gather round.”

It took a few minutes for the omegas to get arranged how the betas instructed them to. There were only seven beds set up in the circle so they’d been told they’d have to take turns. Dean was sitting criss-crossed on a bed next to the one Charlie was sitting on. Claire sat on the bed next to Charlie and was rocking back and forth in excitement. Bela was sitting to Dean’s left, and he looked up to see Meg on the bed across from him.

“Soon you’ll be leaving us for new homes,” Aunt Naomi said. “New families! They won’t judge you for your looks or your intelligence... Stop biting your nails!” Aunt Naomi interrupted herself to yell at Meg who instantly dropped the offending appendage back into her lap. The beta took a calming breath before continuing. “They will love you for the gift only you can give them.”

“Is this like practice for labor? I mean if we get pregnant?” Bela interrupted from beside him.

“BELA!” Aunt Naomi yelled and then immediately lowered her voice back to its exaggeratedly happy tone. “Remember, we speak only after we’re spoken to or we raise our hands.”

Aunt Hester stepped forward from the sidelines to answer the question anyways. She was younger than Naomi but every bit as indoctrinated. “The presenting pose we’re teaching you today is the pose you’ll be taking on your Alpha’s monthly rutting day. Rutting day is a sacred ritual.” All of the omegas look around at each other in confusion.

“A wondrous day,” Aunt Naomi clapped her hands together enthusiastically. “Once a month on fertile days, the omega will present themselves for their Alpha. You will pose like a flower waiting to be seeded.” A silence filled the room as the omegas realized what she was implying.

Dean saw Claire turn towards Charlie gleefully. “Did you hear? We’re going to be flowers!”

“Be quiet,” Charlie warned her.

“Now I want all of you to position yourselves on all fours on the bed,” Aunt Hester explained.

Dean slowly moved to get into position with the other omegas, but he saw Charlie hesitate out of the corner of his eye. Charlie raised her hand to signal she wanted to speak.

“Yes, Charlie?” Aunt Naomi asked.

Charlie cleared her throat nervously. “Are you saying that once a month we’re going to get on all fours on our Commander’s bed… naked… and get knotted by him?” She asked hesitantly. The other omegas all looked around at each other in quiet horror as their reality fully sank in.

“How else did you think you were going to get pregnant, dear?” Aunt Naomi asked with a smile. Charlie didn’t answer, she just stared blankly straight ahead. “Alright girls, get back into your positions: face against the bed, ass up.”

Charlie muttered under her breath, “This is so fucked.” Thankfully it was only loud enough that Dean could hear it. She was right though. This was so much worse than they’d been thinking it would be. They had to figure out a way to get out of here!

~ * ~

Dean has been sitting in the doctor’s office for about thirty minutes while he waits for his name to be called. He’s spent that time glancing around the walls and decorations that are probably meant to be comforting but come across as overly sterile. There are pictures of smiling doctors standing next to grateful Alpha wives holding their new pups. Of course the omegas who actually went through labor to deliver the pups aren’t in any of the pictures.

He’s the only one in the office today. The doctor he’s seeing specializes in omega care so it would make sense that he’s the only one here. Omegas are rare in general, and they tend not to be sent to the doctor unless they’re very sick. Dean is starting to freak out about what’s going to happen to him when they find out he’s not actually sick at all.

“Rolston?” A Guardian dressed in black calls from the front desk. “Rolston!” It takes Dean hearing the name twice to remember that’s technically his name now. It’s a force of habit, but for some reason he was expecting them to call out the name Winchester. He quickly gets up and follows the Guardian down the hallway towards one of the examination rooms.

“Do you know what to do?” The Guardian asks when they step into the closest exam room. Dean just nods. “The doctor will be with you shortly.” The Guardian leaves the room without another glance at him.

Dean takes a deep breath and removes his blinders and cloak. Thankfully he’s allowed to keep his dress on but he does have to remove his undergarments. He winces slightly as he sits up onto the cold examination table and puts his feet up into the stirrups. He looks forward at the sheet that hangs over the middle of the table. The sheet is there to keep the doctors and omegas from looking at each other. The entire process is set up to be as clinical as possible which is another thing Dean is grateful for. It’s bad enough he has to be violated by one Alpha every month, he’d rather not be groped by the doctor too.

It doesn’t take long before Dean hears the sound of the doorknob twisting. He figured he wouldn’t have to wait long since the waiting room had been completely empty. He hears the doctor’s footsteps enter the room and walk over to the table.

“Wow, it’s pouring down like a hurricane today isn’t it?” The doctor asks conversationally as he sits down in the chair and picks up his clipboard. “So I hear you fainted?”

“Yes sir,” Dean replies quietly.

“Well your vitals look good,” the doctor says. “Do you have any other symptoms? Dizziness or nausea?”

“No sir.” Dean figures it’s best not to lie because he won’t be able to fake anything they can scientifically test. He’ll just have to hope his fainting excuse is good enough.

“That’s good. When your appointment was made, your household staff put a note in that it’s rutting day, is that correct?”

“Yes.”

“Well fainting isn’t uncommon on rutting days,” the doctor says in an understanding way. “How are the Rolstons? Are they treating you nicely?”

Dean pauses. The doctor sounds friendly and helpful but there’s no way he can trust him with the truth. Honestly even though he’s been locked in his room for ages, it’s still not as bad as he knows other omegas have it. He’s living in a nice house, he gets fed regularly, and his Alpha doesn’t rape him outside of rutting days. “They treat me very well,” he answers robotically.

He hears the doctor roll his chair a bit to the side, but he’s still behind the curtain between them. “You can talk to me if you want,” the doctor says hesitantly. “I can’t do much about your situation, but I’m a good listener.” Dean wishes he could talk to someone, but he can’t. In a world where Guardians are everywhere, both in obvious black uniforms and hidden amongst the masses as secret police, he can’t trust anyone. After a few moments of silence the doctor sighs and continues. “Okay then. I might as well check to make sure everything is in shape for tonight. This might be a little bit cold, but just relax.”

Dean closes his eyes as he feels the speculum enter him. It doesn’t hurt, but it feels really weird. The doctor checks him out for a moment and then removes the speculum. “You are very fertile,” he says in shock. Even doctors aren’t used to seeing fertile male omegas, Dean guesses. Then the doctor continues under his breath, “Doesn’t matter though because Rolston is probably sterile. Most of those guys are.”

Sterile. That’s a forbidden word. Male Alphas can’t be sterile in this new regime. There are only omegas who are fruitful and female Alphas or betas who are barren.

Dean hears the doctor get up and walk to the door. He locks it and then pauses. _What’s going on?_ “I can help you,” the doctor whispers to him. “If Rolston can’t get you pregnant, they won’t blame him. They’ll say it’s _your_ fault.” Dean turns his head towards the curtain, but he still can’t see the doctor from this angle, only his silhouette. Dean stays quiet. _This doctor can’t possibly be offering to knot him to try and get him pregnant can he?_ “It would only take a few minutes, honey.” Dean gasps when he feels the doctor’s hands slowly moving up his inner thighs. He realizes immediately that he’s still completely exposed with his feet up in the stirrups.

Dean feels like his heart is in his throat when he stutters out a reply. “N-no thank you. It’s too d-dangerous.” The doctor’s hands immediately stop in their movement up his legs. Dean can feel the doctor’s grip tighten briefly before he sighs and lets go of him.

He hears the doctor leave the room, but his heart-rate is starting to pick up speed after what just happened. The implications of what the doctor had told him combined with his unwanted touch triggers a full blown panic attack. Dean is barely able to get off of the examination table and put his clothes back on before the Guardian comes back inside the room to escort him out of the building.He can feel the Guardian helping to support him as they walk to the front desk. While the Guardian goes over his file and treatment plan with the doctor, Dean feels his body zoning out.

_He’s back in their favorite park and this time the three of them are flying kites. Sam has Krissy sitting up on his gargantuan shoulders while the two of them laugh at Dean running around in circles to try and catch enough wind to lift the kite up. By the time he’s finally gotten it up in the air, he’s panting and out of breath. He hands the kite off to Krissy, and she takes off across the park giggling. Sam makes fun of him for being so out of shape and suggests for the millionth time that he should lay off of the cheeseburgers. Dean makes sure Krissy isn’t looking their way when he flips Sam the bird._

When Dean comes to alertness again, he’s in the back seat of the Range Rover. Castiel is driving them back to the Rolston’s house, and Dean sees him glancing back at him through the rear-view mirror with concern etched all over his face. Dean barely has time to wonder what he must look like before he slips back under.

_The wind picks up a bit faster, and Dean can tell the kite is going to get ripped out of Krissy’s tiny hands if he doesn’t grab her. Just as she’s about to let go Dean lunges forward and helps her hold onto the kite as another gust of wind hits them._

_“Woah, Daddy, did you see that?” Krissy laughs._

“Sure did, kiddo!” Dean must’ve said that out loud because in the corner of his mind he notices Castiel look back towards him again.

Dean closes his eyes as he desperately tries to hold onto the memories. They’re all he has now. He needs them, and he can feel them slipping away. He can feel Sam and Krissy beginning to slip away from him and without them he doesn’t think he can do this.

_The wind tugs at them again, and Dean tightens his grip on the kite. “Don’t let it blow away, Daddy,” Krissy says. “Hold on!”_

“I’ve got you, Honey, I’ve got you.” When Dean opens his eyes again, he can barely make out Castiel’s face through the blurriness caused by his tears, but the driver looks even more concerned now. The partition is still up between the front seat and the back where he’s sitting and the rain continues to pummel loudly against the roof, but Castiel must still be able to hear him.

Dean closes his eyes again, trying to bring back the memory, but he’s too alert now. It’s gone. He can’t breathe! It’s too stuffy in here. He needs to open up the window. He moves forward out of his seat and grapples with the controls on the car door, but of course everything is locked. He pounds on the glass and screams, not caring that Castiel is going to think he’s going insane. Maybe he is.

“FUCK!” Dean kicks and pummels the car door as he screams out a string of profanities and the tears continue to roll down his cheeks. Castiel keeps looking back towards him, but continues to drive through the rain back to the house. After a few more moments of angry shouting, Dean’s voice goes hoarse, and he sinks back into his seat. He continues to cry softly but now he just feels numb.

When they pull into the driveway Castiel stops the car, gets out, and opens his door. “We’re home,” he says gruffly. Dean nods but can’t summon the energy to get up right away. Castiel clears his throat awkwardly then says, “I’m sorry this is happening to you. I wish…”

That causes Dean to look up at him angrily. “You wish what, Cas? What do you wish?” Dean thinks Castiel is a good man, and he has been very kind to him since he’s been staying here, but he’s still a part of this system designed to keep omegas imprisoned. The Alphas and the Guardians are the main culprits but every beta who stood by and watched as omegas’ rights got systematically taken away is complicit. That includes people like Benny and Castiel.

Castiel sighs, but he doesn’t respond. He holds out his hand in offering to help Dean get out of the car, but Dean ignores it choosing to get up by himself. He walks up to the house without looking back, but he can hear Castiel's boots on the steps to his guest house behind him.

When Dean gets back into the house he steels himself to confront Mistress Abbadon. He needs to get her to forgive him and let him out of his fucking room. He’ll get down on his hands and knees for her if he has to but he needs this ridiculous time-out to end.

When he gets into the house, he sees that she's knitting something in front of the fireplace in the living room. Dean quietly approaches her, but she must hear him coming because she doesn’t look up when she asks sarcastically, “So are you dying?”

He shakes his head. “Just dehydrated, Mrs. Rolston.”

“You need to take better care of yourself,” she says smarmily. Dean wants nothing more than to wring her neck, but that would be the opposite of helpful so he clenches his fists at his sides. He can feel his fingernails slightly piercing the skin of his palms and the pain grounds him. “Did the doctor check to make sure everything is in working shape for this evening?”

“Yes,” Dean replies quietly. “He was very thorough.” He shudders lightly trying not to think about his time in the doctor’s office earlier. Having another panic attack right now wouldn’t help his cause.

“Good,” Abbadon replies simply and goes back to her knitting.

Dean waits for a second to summon the courage to say what he needs to say next. “Mrs. Rolston,” he starts meekly, “I know I failed you, and I’m truly very sorry.” The Alpha doesn’t look up, but her hands stop knitting. “I will do my best not to let it happen again. I’ve learned my lesson.” Abbadon looks up then but she still isn’t looking directly at him. “Please…” His voice drops down into a whisper. “Please let me out.”

Abbadon picks up her needles and resumes her knitting. “Go back to your room.” She doesn’t say it angrily, but her voice leaves no room for further argument.

Dean inhales a shaky breath and begins the long walk back up to his tiny attic. After he’s out of view of Mrs. Rolston the tears begin to fall again. He’s too exhausted from everything that’s happened today to even try and stop his tears. He closes the bedroom door once he’s inside and slowly walks over to the closet. He lays down on the cool wood floor and touches the mysterious carving on the wall. “How did you survive here?” He asks the carving. “Please help me. I need help.”

Of course the carving doesn’t reply. Maybe that means he’s not fully crazy yet, but the silence only makes him feel more alone. 


	8. The Way Out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been so long since I've updated. Life has been crazy! I'm trying to write a couple chapters in advance so there won't be as long a gap in between postings

The morning light streamed through the doors of the Purgatory Training Center as Dean rushed through the hallways looking for Aunt Hester. It was vital to their plan that he find her while the rest of the omegas were in their morning prayers. He could hear them praying out loud led by Aunt Naomi. This was the moment he and Charlie had been waiting for.

Finally Dean spotted Aunt Hester walking down the hallway back towards the makeshift chapel where the omegas were praying. “Aunt Hester!” He called, and she turned to face him. “The toilet in the east wing bathroom is backed up again.”

Aunt Hester sighed dramatically and followed him down the hallway to the bathroom. Dean knew that Charlie was already hidden, but he sent up a quick prayer anyways that this plan would work. Dean led the beta towards the broken toilet, but what she didn’t know is that they’d broken it on purpose. Charlie had pulled out the sharp piece of metal that she’d used to deface the bathroom wall, and when Aunt Hester leaned over the toilet to see what was wrong with it, that’s when Charlie pounced. She shoved Aunt Hester’s head into the wall to knock her off balance and then held the sharp metal against her throat.

“Don’t make a single sound,” Charlie hissed at her and then turned towards Dean. “Did anybody see you?”

“No,” Dean whispered. Charlie nodded and started tying up Hester’s hands behind her back. Dean went over to the bathroom door to see if it was clear for them to make a run for it. Once he gave the all-clear they quickly headed to the stairway that led to the basement boiler room.

Dean held up the cattle prod he’d taken off of Aunt Hester and showed it to her in a silent threat. “Stay quiet and take your clothes off,” he ordered, using his real voice.

Hester began crying softly but didn’t move to start undressing. Dean quickly shocked her with the cattle prod to show he was serious. Hester continued sobbing, but she started taking off her grey beta outfit. Charlie began doing the same with her red omega outfit.

“Hurry up,” Dean ordered, holding the cattle prod up again. After Hester was undressed down to her underwear, Charlie put on the beta outfit. “Sit here and put your arms around the pipe,” Dean ordered. Hester looked at him with tears in her eyes but quickly followed his order. He tied her arms and legs around the pipe so she wouldn’t be able to move.

“Please,” Aunt Hester whimpered softly. “I know this wasn’t your idea, Dean.”

“Shut the fuck up,” he hissed at her. Dean looked over at Charlie where she was finishing putting on the beta outfit. He walked over to hand her the cattle prod and grab his own cloak and blinders from where he’d stashed them.

Charlie stepped over towards Hester and started threatening her with the cattle prod. Dean understood her fury, and felt it himself, but they didn’t have time to taunt the beta right now. They had to leave! “Charlie, come on!” The two of them quickly left the boiler room and walked briskly towards the front doors of the training center. If they could manage to make it past the Guardians at the door, they’d be free.

“Fuck,” Dean whispered under his breath. He could feel his chest tightening in anxiety.

Charlie squeezed his arm encouragingly. “Calm down.”

When they got to the front entrance, the Guardian standing by the door held his hand up to stop them. “Where are you taking this omega?” He asked.

Charlie held up Hester’s ID badge, and Dean prayed the Guardian wouldn’t look too closely at it. The Guardian just nodded and opened up the door for them. He was probably a low-level guard and didn’t want to get in trouble for questioning an Aunt’s authority.

Dean and Charlie walked briskly down the ramp leading away from the Purgatory Training Center. The first part of their escape plan had gone almost perfectly. Now they just had to figure out how to get out of the country.

~*~

Dean lets out a resigned sigh as he kneels down on the pillow in the Commander’s bedroom. He can’t help thinking about what the doctor had said earlier. What if Commander Alistair is sterile? What if he is unable to get him pregnant? Since this would be Dean’s second unfruitful posting, he’d most likely get sent to The Empty. There’d be no chance of ever seeing Krissy again.

Before his thoughts can spiral further, he hears the door open and someone walk in. The footsteps are too light for it to be Benny. It’s probably Castiel then. He tries to stop the tiny smile forming at the edge of his lips at just the thought of getting to see Castiel again. He can’t afford to be developing some sort of crush on the Rolstons’ driver.

“Blessed be the womb.” That’s not Castiel’s voice. It’s Commander Alistair. He’s not supposed to be in here yet. First comes the household staff, then Mistress Abbadon, and then finally the Commander.

“M-may the Great Alpha make me fruitful,” Dean replies quietly. The Commander steps forward into his view. Since Dean is still kneeling on his pillow, his eyes are level with the Alpha’s crotch. That thought makes him slightly uncomfortable, but thankfully the Commander sits down in the chair opposite where Dean’s kneeling so their eyes are more level.

“I’m sorry, did I scare you?” Alistair asks gently. “I just wanted to say hello. I haven’t seen you in a while.”

“Hello,” Dean whispers, raising his eyes to meet the Commander’s.

“Hi,” Alistair replies just as softly. “I was thinking perhaps we could have a rematch of our game. Tonight?” Both of them hear footsteps on the stairs and look up. It’s probably Benny and Castiel. “Poker?” Dean doesn’t know what he’s supposed to say. He’s still so caught off guard about the Commander seeming to take an interest in him to where he’d break the rules like this. “My office?” Alistair prods.

Dean opens his mouth to respond, but no words come out. Before he has the chance to say anything, the door opens and Benny and Castiel step inside. The Commander quickly stands up and moves to the other side of the room. Dean shoots a quick look towards Castiel before he turns back around to face forward. The driver’s face looked closed off and possibly even angry. Is he mad at Dean or at the Commander?

The sound of heels on the wooden staircase make them all go even more still than they had been before. Mistress Abbadon steps inside the room and raises her neatly plucked eyebrows at her husband. “Someone is an early bird,” she says in a monotone. Dean can’t tell if she’s upset or not. She’s very difficult to read. “Blessed be the womb.”

“May the Great Alpha make me fruitful,” Dean responds dutifully. Mistress Abbadon makes eye contact with him briefly before looking up at her husband with a confused expression on her face. _Shit_.

After their standard prayer is finished, the household staff files out of the room followed by Abbadon. She sends one lingering look towards her husband before she leaves. Dean’s nerves accelerate now that he’s alone with the Commander again.

“Present yourself for me, pet,” Alistair says coldly. He doesn’t sound angry, but he isn’t using the soft voice he’d been using with Dean in the previous times they’ve been alone together. Dean’s heartbeat begins to quicken, but he does as he’s told and undresses quickly before getting up on the bed and presenting himself.

He hears the Commander getting undressed behind him, and now he’s starting to worry. He can tell that his hole is completely dry right now. He’s not turned on at all. He’s too anxious to be turned on. All he can do is hope it won’t hurt that much. He clenches his fists and closes his eyes tightly while he listens to the Alpha jacking himself off behind him.

His heartrate continues to increase the longer it takes. At any second he expects to feel a painful intrusion, but it never comes. He desperately wants to look backwards at the Alpha, but he hasn’t been given permission to move yet. Maybe the Commander is having a hard time getting it up? The sounds of him jacking himself off quicken and then stop. Alistair lets out a big sigh, and then Dean hears the sound of him getting dressed.

“Go back to your room,” the Alpha says harshly before stepping into the connected bathroom and closing the door. Dean dresses and walks back up to his room in a daze. At this point he’s not even glad he didn’t have to get raped tonight. He’s mostly terrified of whatever consequences there might be.

_I’ll be blamed. I’m not blameless. He tried to talk to me before, and I didn’t respond. He tried to connect with me. Maybe he needs a connection to be able to get it up._

Dean stops outside of his bedroom door. He tries to force his feet to step over the threshold, but he can’t seem to make himself move. He can’t bear the thought of being stuck in this room any longer.

If you leave a peach out on the counter long enough it’ll start to rot. That’s what he feels like. He feels like the word ‘decay’. On shaky legs, Dean steps back inside his room, dropping his shoes at the door. He moves over towards the closet and closes the door behind himself, locking himself inside.

~*~

Charlie and Dean walked briskly down the street, trying their best not to draw attention to themselves. This is the first time they’d been outside since being taken to the Purgatory Training Center. During the months they were there, the outside world changed drastically. All of the old shops were closed, and all color was removed from the streets. Everything now was varying shades of grey and brown. Even the trees looked dead. 

“We just have to get back to Seattle,” Charlie whispered. “I know the Omega Collective still has some safe houses.” The Omega Collective is a group Charlie and Dean used to belong to. It had been founded by Charlie’s omega mother before she passed away. Charlie and a few friends had continued to run it in her memory. Before the United States fell to the rebels, it had been used as a sort of battered omega shelter where people could come if they’d been abused or raped. Now it was being used as a form of resistance against the new regime. Dean doubted it was still functioning since most omegas had been picked up and sent to training centers by now, but it was their only plan.

“Where are we?” Dean asked, looking around at the foreign landscape. It looked almost like they’d stepped back in time. The only cars on the road were black vans that belonged to Guardians or other military vehicles. Men dressed in black walked around openly brandishing assault rifles.

“They probably didn’t take us far,” Charlie replied. “Most of the girls are from the city.”

“Where are all the street signs?” Dean asked. Without signs or any recognizable landmarks, it was going to be very difficult to figure out where they were.

The two of them walked further down the street, ignoring the sirens of Guardian vehicles passing by them. After a few minutes they came across a wall with bodies strung up along equal intervals. There were so many bodies. Men and women of all ages and gender designations. Anyone who tried to fight against this new regime. The stench of decomposition as they walked passed the bodies was unlike anything Dean had ever smelled before. It was impossible to keep himself from gagging at it.

A guard walked across the sidewalk in front of them pushing a dolly with multiple corpses on it. Dean saw Charlie cover her mouth with her hands. It was like they’d stepped into the pages of a dystopian horror novel. How could things have changed so drastically in the few months they’d been locked away in the training center?

They continued walking along the path and passed by a group of Guardians throwing books and paintings onto a big bonfire. Book burnings have been carried out in many different countries in the past as a form of censorship, but Dean never thought he’d live to see something like that happen here. They walked past the bonfire without looking at it. They didn’t want to draw any unnecessary attention to themselves. 

Eventually the two of them were able to find the entrance to the subway. If they could find the right train they would be able to get to Seattle. They walked past men wearing suits probably leaving work for the day. Their lives haven’t changed as much as the rest of society.

When they got to the subway station where the trains come through, Dean noticed a few men wearing construction hats. They were up on ladders using hammers to try and chisel away the old signs that label which directions and stations the trains stop at. That meant it was going to be difficult for them to figure out which train they needed to take.

“We can’t get on the wrong train,” Dean whispered in a panic.

Charlie grabbed his arm to stop him. “Just wait here. I’m going to go ask them.” She nodded her head over towards where a couple Guardians were standing on the train platform waiting for the next train to come in. Dean’s heartrate started picking up again, and he pulled on her cloak to stop her. “It’s fine,” Charlie smiled at him. “I’m an Aunt.”

Dean stood still as Charlie walked towards the two men holding guns by the platform. This was definitely a big risk, but it was their only option. They could not afford to get on the wrong train.

“Excuse me,” Charlie asked them politely. She started asking them about the train schedule, but Dean couldn’t hear exactly what she was saying over the sound of footsteps coming up behind him. He turned around just enough to see who was approaching him. _Fuck_. More Guardians.

“Blessed day, miss,” one of the Guardians stopped in front of him with a small smile on his face. Dean was taken aback momentarily by being referred to as ‘miss’. At the training center they’d been forcing him to act more feminine since omegas are mostly female. He’d been beaten and shocked multiple times for refusing to play along. Eventually it got to the point where it wasn’t worth fighting it anymore. Now he can pull out his falsetto voice without even having to think about it.

“Blessed day,” he responded meekly.

“Do you need help?” The Guardian asked, still being friendly.

“Yes, thank you,” Dean raised his head slightly to look at the man around his blinders. “Can you tell me which train goes to Seattle?”

“It should be coming in now,” the man responded. “It’s confusing without the signs.” The Guardian chuckled a bit as if this entire thing was silly. Dean wracked his brain trying to come up with an excuse to leave this man and walk back over towards Charlie, but he couldn’t think of anything. “Where’s your walking partner? You shouldn’t be out here by yourself.”

The train came screeching into the station then, and Charlie looked back to meet his gaze. She immediately noticed the Guardian standing next to him, and her face quickly switched from confusion to terror.

“Can I see your I.D. card?” The Guardian asked him. “Where are you posted?” Dean tried to make up some excuse for why he didn’t have an I.D. card or posting, but there was no way for him to lie his way out of this one. He wasn’t going to be able to escape, but there was still time for Charlie to get away. They hadn’t seen her with him so they’d have no way of knowing the two of them were together.

The doors to the train opened and people began exiting and filling up the platform. This was her last chance. Dean felt tears prick up in his eyes, but he forced a tiny smile onto his face. Charlie looked directly at him, and he nodded subtly at her, hoping she’d understand that he wanted her to escape without him. It looked like she was about to start crying too, but she took one last look at him and then boarded the train.

The other Guardian came up behind him and grabbed his arm to start leading him away. Dean kept his eye on the train as it pulled out of the station, knowing this might be the last time he’d be able to see his best friend. Once the train was out of sight, he let himself be dragged away. He was probably going to be harshly punished when he got back to the training center, but he couldn’t find the energy to care. Charlie was gone and any dreams of escaping were gone with her.

~*~

Dean lets his head thump back against the wall of the closet. He’s so frustrated. Not just with the situation, but with himself.

_Charlie, you wouldn’t stand for this shit_ , he thinks to himself. _You wouldn’t let them keep you locked in this room for two weeks. You’d find a way out_. He kicks the closet door with his foot, and it squeaks slightly as it opens up.

He stands up on shaking legs and immediately knows what he has to do. He slowly walks down the stairs, taking care to step quietly since the household will all be asleep by now. He stops outside of Commander Alistair’s office and takes a deep breath before he knocks on the door. He hears the Alpha’s footsteps on the wooden floor, and then the door opens slowly. Alistair doesn’t say anything, but he does smile a little bit when he sees Dean standing there. He opens the door further in invitation, and Dean steps inside, closing the door behind himself.

The Commander goes to grab the set of poker chips from the locked drawer in his desk where he’s been hiding them. While he gets the game set up, Dean takes the opportunity to glance at the books lining the walls of the office. So many books. He was never a big reader, not like Sam was, but Dean would do about anything to be able to sit and read a book right now.

One of the titles catches his eye. It’s a book for learning German. That must’ve been the language of the mystery message carved into his closet wall by the previous Ofal. Dean looks up and sees the Alpha is already sitting at the game table waiting for him. He’ll have to try and figure out a subtle way to ask Alistair to translate the mystery carving.

They play a few rounds of poker in silence. Dean can’t decide if it’s a comfortable silence or not. The Alpha seems happy enough if the small smile on his face means anything. Either way, Dean feels like he needs to say something to fill the silence. He remembers the Alpha had mentioned he was going on a trip a couple weeks ago. That was before Dean had been sent to his room.

“How was your trip?” Dean asks conversationally.

“Tiring,” Alistair replies. “I was meeting with some delegates from the U.K. trying to organize a trade visit. It was stressful. A lot of difficult personalities, you have no idea.” Dean tries his best not to roll his eyes. He may not be a politician, but he’s not stupid. He knows what it’s like to work with difficult people.

“Maybe I should let you win again,” Dean says with the faintest smirk on his lips. That stops the Commander short. He leans back in his chair and folds his hands together in front of his face before breaking out into a fit of chuckles.

Once he’s stopped laughing Alistair says, “That’s nice of you, but I’d rather win in a fair fight.” They continue to play in silence. After Dean’s won another round, and Alistair is dealing out the cards, he figures it’s time to bite the bullet.

“Did you ever study German?” He tries his best to keep his voice light.

Alistair looks up at him, somewhat puzzled, before going back to dealing out the cards. “Yes, I took German in high school.” The room lapses back into silence while Dean thinks about what this means.

_Has she been here? The original Ofal. German-speaking, letter carving omega._

Dean feels Alistair’s eyes on him as he finishes dealing the next hand, so he sends him another small smile. This one is a bit pinched though because he’s still trying to process what this means. The Alpha Commander doesn’t seem to notice. He goes right back to playing.

Is Dean not the first omega he’s invited into this room? What happened? Did she say the wrong thing? Did she insult him, the supreme ruler of this household? What price did she pay for her disobedience?

~*~

The two betas held onto Dean firmly by the wrists as they dragged him towards the table in the center of the room. He was back in the Purgatory Training Center. Of course, he wasn’t able to get out. How stupid he’d been to even try. Now the only option left to him was to beg for forgiveness.

“Please,” Dean sobbed. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

The betas didn’t acknowledge him, they just forced him down belly-first onto the table and strapped down his arms and legs so he couldn’t move. He looked up and saw Aunt Naomi’s disappointed face staring back down at him.

“The most painful thing about this isn’t the betrayal of trust, Dean,” Aunt Naomi started lecturing. “Do you know what’s most painful?” Dean tried to look around, but the other betas have left. It was just him and Aunt Naomi now. He was fully at her mercy. “The most painful thing about this whole situation is the ingratitude. Don’t you realize how lucky you are?”

Dean nodded his head vigorously. “I realize. I realize.” He could feel tears leaking down his cheeks, but he didn’t care how embarrassing this looked. He didn’t care that he was begging. He would do anything to avoid whatever punishment they were planning to inflict on him. Claire had lost a hand for cursing at Aunt Naomi that first day. What could possibly be in store for him after he attacked an Aunt and tried to escape?

“You were an uneducated, used-up slut,” Aunt Naomi said harshly. “Do you think any Alpha would want you, tainted as you are?” Dean closed his eyes. The beta always had a gift for being able to find what hurt the most. “But the Great Alpha found a way to make you useful.” She stepped forward towards the table. “So where’s the gratitude?”

Dean can’t believe he’s supposed to be grateful towards the people who killed his brother, stole his daughter, and are planning on sending him off to some house where an Alpha will rape him once a month to get him pregnant. He must really have lost himself because instead of a snarky retort, the words that tumbled out of his mouth were a string of apologies.

“There there,” Aunt Naomi shushed him, fixing his bonnet that had started to slip from how he was jerkily moving his head around. “I know you’re sorry, dear. The Great Alpha is forgiving of our trespasses, but actions do have consequences.” Dean closed his eyes tightly, feeling more tears slip through. “Aunt Hester,” Naomi said in greeting. Dean’s head jerked up, and he turned around to see the beta they’d tied up during their escape attempt. She was holding a whip in her hand, and from the expression on her face, she was obviously extraordinarily pissed.

Dean turned back around in horror. “Please, Aunt Naomi.” The older beta didn’t show any emotion whatsoever. “Please, I’m sorry, Aunt Naomi. I’m so sorry.”

“Take off his socks,” Aunt Hester ordered one of the younger betas who’d dragged him in here.

“No, please, Aunt Naomi!”

Dean heard the air whistle as the whip was brought down forcefully on his bare feet. The sound of the whip striking him was followed immediately by a pain so intense and white-hot. It was unlike anything he’d ever felt before. He wouldn’t have been able to hold in his scream even if he’d wanted to.

Hester didn’t give him a second to catch his breath before she was bringing the whip down again and again. Every time Dean thought it couldn’t possibly hurt worse than it already did, he was surprised again. The pain grew and grew until he was floating in it. He felt disconnected from his body. The screams coming from his mouth sounded inhuman. They must not belong to him. They sounded so far away from where he was up above. Floating.

He came somewhat back down to himself as the two younger betas dragged his body between them back towards the dormitory where all of the omegas were sleeping. When he was brought in, all of the omegas sat up in their beds to see what happened. There must’ve been a lot of talk when he and Charlie tried to escape.

He was aware enough of his surroundings to tell that they’d bandaged up his bloody feet and that they were tucking him into his bed, but he still felt like he wasn’t fully connected to his body. His eyes stared at nothing, and he didn’t move apart from twitching occasionally at another round of pain through his tortured feet.

“Back to bed!” One of the betas yelled, and the rest of the omegas immediately dropped back down onto their mattresses and pretended to go back to sleep.

~*~

Alistair counts up the chips left on the table and adds them up against their earlier scores from previous matches. He chuckles. “You did let me win.”

“Maybe,” Dean says coyly.

“How about a rematch tomorrow after the rutting?” The Commander asks.

Dean quickly schools his expression. He’d forgotten that since the Alpha hadn’t been able to get an erection earlier that meant they’d have to try again the next day. He plasters a fake smile on his face. “It’s a date.” Alistair pauses momentarily in putting away the poker chips to smile back at him.

Dean figures now is as good a time as any to press his luck. “Could you do me a favor?” He leans over to help put away the rest of the pieces.

“Sure! Anything,” the Alpha responds, quickly adding, “Within reason of course.”

“I was wondering if you could translate something for me,” Dean tries his best to sound nonchalant. “I think it’s German. Anfangen ist leicht, beharren eine Kunst?”

Alistair’s hand stops in mid-air for a second before it continues putting away the poker chips. “Where did you hear that?”

Dean doesn’t want to answer that question. “Does it mean anything?”

“You’re right, it’s German,” Alistair says. “It means something like: To begin is easy, to persist is an art.”

Dean looks down at his lap, but he can’t keep the smile off of his face. “To begin is easy, to persist is an art,” he repeats. He looks back up at the Commander. “Thanks.”

The Alpha nods. “Where’d you hear it?” His tone isn’t angry, but Dean can tell he isn’t going to be able to avoid answering the question.

“From a friend,” Dean responds. It’s not technically a lie.

Alistair keeps looking at him. Something in his face has changed, but Dean can’t pinpoint what it is. “Did you know her?”

Dean knows he has to be talking about the previous Ofal. He wonders if the Commander knows that phrase is carved in his bedroom closet. “What happened to her?” He asks.

The Alpha stares at him for a few moments as if he’s trying to figure out if he should answer the question. “She’s dead.”

“What happened to her?” Dean asks again, a bit more forcefully this time.

“She killed herself,” Alistair says, looking down at his hands folded on the table. “She hung herself in the closet. She must have found her life unbearable.”

In that moment, Dean knows he’s found his way out. Not a way out of his life, but a way out of his room. “And you want my life to be bearable,” he starts.

“I would prefer it,” Alistair says quietly. For the first time since Dean’s been here, the Alpha actually looks vulnerable.

Dean knows he has to make this speech sound perfect if he’s going to get what he wants. He leans forward in his chair and takes a deep breath. “It has been so hard being locked in my room for weeks,” he begins. “I know Mrs. Rolston is trying to teach me a lesson. I know she’s right to punish me, but it has been such a long time. I’m worried that I’m starting to give up.” Alistair looks up from where he’s been staring at his hands. The only emotion on his face is concern. _Hook, line, and sinker_. “I wouldn’t want to give up… like my friend.”

“That would be a tragedy,” Alistair whispers. Dean sits back in his chair, satisfied.

The next morning Dean puts on his blinders and ties his boots up quickly. His hands are shaking from excitement. He’s actually being allowed to resume his shopping duties! Alistair must’ve had a talk with Mistress Abbadon and gone over her head to end her ridiculous time-out. Even though she’s in charge of all things pertaining to how the house is run, he’s still the Alpha male. Whatever he says, goes.

Dean rushes down the back staircase and opens the door to the courtyard. He’s desperate to feel the fresh air on his skin. He’ll never take these simple pleasures for granted again. He steps outside and takes a deep breath before making his way towards the metal gate where the new Ofmarv is waiting for him.

He passes by the Commander’s black Range Rover where Castiel is polishing the headlights. The dark-haired man looks surprised to see him outside again, but his initial shock turns into a wry smile. Dean can’t help the huge smile that lights up his face in return.

Not everyone is happy to see him out and about though. He can feel Mistress Abbadon staring daggers at him from inside the house. He looks up towards the window, and when their gazes meet, she quickly closes the curtains. He’s sure he’s going to pay for what he did, but there’s no way she can prove it was his doing. In order to do that, the Commander would’ve needed to tell her about their illicit poker games. That could get Alistair into a lot of trouble for a variety of reasons. No, there’s no way Mistress Abbadon knows Dean’s behind this. He doesn’t want to rub it in her face either way, so he quickly wipes the smile off of his face and hurries to the gate to greet the new Ofmarv.

The two omegas walk in silence towards the shops while Dean thinks about the first Ofal. It’s strange, the revelation that there was an omega that came before him. She helped him find his way out. She’s dead, but in some ways she’s still alive. She’s alive in all of the omegas who continue to fight.

As Charlie would probably say if she was here, “Anfangen ist leicht, beharren eine Kunst, bitches!”


	9. A Proposal

Dean takes a tiny sip from his crystal tumbler while he waits for Alistair to lay down his cards. They’ve switched things up a bit tonight, playing gin rummy instead of their usual poker. That’s also why they’re drinking some rum from the Alpha’s secret cabinet. Dean’s not a big fan of rum, but he’ll take whatever he can get. Alcohol is prohibited in this new regime, but Dean’s found that Alistair enjoys bending the rules a bit.

He stretches his leg out under the table. He’d taken his uncomfortable boots off an hour ago, and he’s enjoying being able to relax a bit. His stockinged foot makes contact with the Alpha’s leg. Instead of pulling away like he would’ve done in the past, Dean leaves it there. Alistair looks up at him with a small smile and then goes back to tallying up their points.

“Very nice,” Alistair compliments him.

“Thank you,” Dean says, taking another sip of rum.

“You really got me in that one!”

“I got lucky,” Dean feigns modesty. Cockiness isn’t a good look for an omega.

“Maybe you’re just learning my weaknesses,” Alistair supplies.

“Maybe,” Dean shrugs.

“I’ll have to be more careful,” the Alpha says with a wink to show he’s only joking.

“Where’s the fun in that?” Dean plays along. Alistair chuckles.

What has Dean learned after thirty game nights? He’s learned that the Alpha likes it when he flirts, and he likes it when the Alpha lets him win. They’re a match made in Heaven. Or maybe it’s hell.

Alistair gets up to put away the cards in his desk. While he’s over there, Dean finishes off his drink. He’s feeling pleasantly tipsy after just the one drink. Going without alcohol since the takeover has really destroyed his built-up tolerance. That might be one of the only good things to come out of this whole mess.

The Alpha pulls something out of a drawer in his desk and hides it behind his back. He steps back towards the tiny table they’ve been playing at. “I have a present for you,” Alistair says in that soft-spoken voice he seems to reserve just for Dean.

Dean stays seated, but he moves his leg so his dress slides up a bit, revealing more of his stockings. The Alpha’s eyes darken, and he shakes his head as if to clear it before handing Dean what he’d been hiding behind his back. It’s an old Cosmopolitan magazine.

Dean’s face pinches up in confusion, both at how the Commander got his hands on this when all magazines had supposedly been confiscated and burned and also at how the Commander must not know him at all if he thinks he’d be interested in reading this shit. He reaches out to grab the magazine from the Alpha.

“I thought all of these had been destroyed,” Dean says.

“Some of us can still appreciate the old ways,” Alistair says with a glint in his eye. “I thought you might like to read it.”

Dean grabs the magazine that’s being offered to him, but then he immediately puts it down on the table. “It’s forbidden,” he says, looking down.

“Not while you’re with me,” Alistair says, reaching across the table to gently lift Dean’s chin up. Dean forces his face into a grateful smile, and the Commander leans back and pours himself a bit more rum. He holds the glass out towards Dean, but Dean shakes his head. He’s already pretty tipsy as it is.

Dean hesitantly flips open the magazine and begins to read. He can still feel Alistair’s intense eyes on his face. The Alpha is watching him while resting his head on his arm. He looks completely at ease, not stiff and commanding like how he normally carries himself. Dean has noticed that these moments together in his office appear to be the only times Alistair feels like he can let his guard down. Funny enough, it’s also the only time Dean is able to put his guard down. Obviously, he can’t ever fully let his guard down, but it does feel nice to be able to relax at least a little bit.

Dean remembers girls reading these kinds of magazines religiously when he was in high school. He remembers them giggling over the gossip columns or vowing to buy whatever new clothes were supposed to be ‘in’ next season. At the time he’d found it all a bit silly, but now it just seems weird. It’s hard to imagine that only a few years ago people were so concerned with inconsequential things like this, and now everything’s changed so drastically.

He can feel that the Alpha’s eyes are still on him so he turns the page again. Ah, _Ten Ways to Tell How He Feels About You_. ‘Number one: he brings you small gifts.’ Dean looks over the magazine at the Commander with a smile. The Alpha grins back. _Check_.

“Nice gift?” Alistair asks, and it almost sounds like he’s insecure. As much as Dean finds it hilarious that the Alpha would think he’d have any interest in what beauty tips are good for Fall 2018, he has to admit he is thankful for the gift. He’d relish the chance to read anything to be honest.

Dean nods, “Thank you.” He smiles and Alistair chuckles.

“That look on your face is thanks enough.” Dean pulls the magazine up so that it’s covering the bottom half of his face. He raises his eyebrows flirtatiously and then goes back to reading. The Commander actually _giggles_ at that. Dean must be playing his part very convincingly.

~*~

The next morning Castiel enters the main house on his way to the kitchen to grab some coffee. He used to grab coffee right when he woke up, but since he found out that Benny makes Ofal’s breakfast at nine, he’s started waiting until then so he has the excuse to see her. It’s pathetic.

He’s honestly surprised he’s grown this obsessed with the willful omega after a few short weeks. Not only is it throwing his head for a loop, it’s also making him question his sexuality. He keeps this secret for many obvious reasons, but he’s always considered himself gay up to this point. He’s only ever been attracted to male betas or other Alphas. He’s always been attracted to the idea of male omegas, but despite some people swearing up and down that they exist, he hasn’t ever met one. He thinks if he ever did, he’d lose his damn mind.

“Castiel,” Mrs. Rolston calls from the living room where she’s busy knitting. He sighs inaudibly before stepping into the room to see why she’s called him.

She stands up. “I have something I need to discuss with you.” He maintains eye contact with her to show he’s listening. “In private.”

This can’t be good. “We can go up to my loft if you wish.” She nods, so he leads her out of the main house, across the driveway, and up to his small loft apartment. If he’d known someone other than himself would be up here today, he would’ve cleaned up the place a bit. Thankfully all connections to Commander Azazel or evidence of his dual employment are hidden under his floorboards.

“What’s wrong?” He asks when it seems she isn’t going to say anything.

“This is a bit of a delicate situation,” she says and then clears her throat. It looks like she might even be blushing.

“It’s okay, Mrs. Rolston, you can tell me whatever it is.” Despite his calm exterior, inside he’s beginning to freak out. Has she noticed how he stares at Ofal? Or maybe she’s figured out who and what he really is. Then again if either of those things are true, why hasn’t she called the Guardians on him?

She coughs delicately again. “I’m concerned that Ofal might not be able to get pregnant by the usual methods.”

That is not what he’d been expecting. “I’m sorry, what?”

She’s definitely blushing now. “I think Commander Alistair might be sterile,” she says in a rush. Castiel does his best to keep the shock off of his face. He wouldn’t be surprised if that were the case. Many of the Alpha Commanders are sterile, but it is shocking that a wife would come out and say that.

“That is definitely possible,” he says carefully.

She nods, “I thought it might be.” She scratches the back of her hair where it’s coiled tightly in a bun. Her hair is always pulled back so tightly, Castiel wonders how she doesn’t have constant migraines. “I’m going to stop dancing around the subject and just ask you. Castiel, would you be willing to try and get Ofal pregnant?”

Castiel feels himself pale. So, she _does_ know. How? Why hasn’t she reported him?

“I know you’re an Alpha, Castiel.”

“How?” There are a hundred questions he could ask right now, but that’s the only one that comes out of his mouth.

“It’s the way you carry yourself,” she explains. “To be honest, it was just a hunch I had… until now.”

Castiel looks down at his feet. “So, what now?”

“I’m not going to report you,” Abbadon says. “You’ve been very good to us over the years. I trust you. That’s why I’m asking you this.”

He thinks for a moment. He doesn’t really have a choice in the matter. There’s always the possibility that Abbadon could report him if he doesn’t stay on her good side. His inner Alpha rejoices at the idea of being able to knot an omega, but his brain feels awful. It’s not that he doesn’t want to go there with Ofal. It’s that he _does_. He wants it to be real, not something that neither of them has any say in. “Okay,” he sighs. “Have you spoken to Ofal about it yet?”

“I haven’t, but Ofal is a good omega. She’ll do what is required of her to fulfill her biological destiny.” Castiel is barely able to keep himself from rolling his eyes. Abbadon tells him that she’s going to the Abels’ house to see baby Anael, but that she’ll be back in the afternoon so they can get this over with.

After she leaves, Castiel looks at the clock on his wall. It’s 9:30am. If he hurries, he can probably intercept Ofal before she leaves for her shopping. He needs to give her some sort of warning.

~*~

Dean eats his morning oatmeal mechanically. It tastes like shit, but he’ll take food however he can get it. Benny is doing dishes while Dean eats at the kitchen island. He’s started coming down for breakfast a bit later in the morning because it means he’s able to avoid the Rolstons’. They eat a bit earlier in the fancy dining room before the Commander has to leave for work.

He looks up when he hears Castiel’s work boots on the wood floors that lead to the kitchen. The driver looks good today. Even better than usual. There’s a redness to his cheeks which makes Dean wonder if it’s cold outside. Or maybe he’s blushing about something.

Castiel ignores him while he heads to the coffee maker to go grab his coffee, but then he turns around to look at Dean. It’s almost like he wants to ignore Dean, but he can’t. Dean knows the feeling. He looks back down at his unappetizing oatmeal with a small smile on his face.

“Blessed day,” Benny greets Castiel without pausing in his work.

“Blessed day,” Cas repeats. He leans up against the kitchen counter and starts sipping his coffee.

“Don’t you have somewhere to be?” Benny asks him. Normally Castiel grabs his coffee and leaves immediately, so Dean also wonders why he’s still standing here.

“No,” Castiel answers simply.

“Must be nice,” Benny dries his hands off and leaves the room to go clean the rest of the house.

_Ten Ways to Tell How He Feels About You_. ‘Number two: he keeps finding ways to accidentally spend time with you.’ Dean takes another bite. ‘Number three…’ _Shit, what was number three?_

Dean sighs when he hears the town bell ring twice to signal it’s time for the omegas to do their shopping. They live their lives to a series of bells and commands, and he’s more than tired of it. He gets up and dumps his empty bowl into the sink to wash it. He feels Castiel move to stand behind him, and he shivers. _What is he doing?_

He turns around to face the driver who is all up in his personal space now. “What is it?”

Castiel’s eyes look up from where he’d been staring at Dean’s lips. He licks them unconsciously, and Castiel’s eyes immediately flick down again.

“Ofal,” he whispers, and it sends a tingle down Dean’s spine. “I need to tell you something.”

“What?” Dean asks just as quietly.

Castiel looks around to make sure they’re alone. The only other person in the house right now is Benny, and he’s probably up cleaning the Rolstons’ bedroom. “I’m an Alpha,” he says, and Dean has to keep his jaw from dropping. Now it all makes sense. Dean’s body has been reacting so strongly towards Cas because he’s an Alpha and not a beta. He wonders why Cas has been hiding that. Alphas get treated better in this society. Why would anyone want to pretend they’re a lower gender designation?

In the time that Dean’s stayed silent, Castiel’s face has pinched up with anxiety. Clearly he’s worried that he’s shared too much. Dean realizes he needs to open up and say something about himself to reciprocate. “I’m a male omega,” he says in a rush.

“You’re a—"

Dean nods, blushing. Before he has any chance to regret telling him, Castiel lunges forward and presses his lips against Dean’s in a fierce kiss. The suddenness of it takes Dean by surprise, but it only takes him a moment to get with the program and kiss Castiel back. The Alpha’s hands move to his hips to pull him flush against his solid chest, and Dean groans at the show of strength. Castiel doesn’t look that strong, but he must be hiding some muscles under that black outfit he always wears.

Castiel pulls back briefly, his eyes hooded. “You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do that.”

“Me too,” Dean sighs.

Castiel moves towards his neck so he can scent him, and Dean is once again annoyed at the household policy requiring everyone else to wear scent blockers. He desperately wants to know what Castiel smells like now that he knows he’s an Alpha.

“Fuck, Ofal, you smell so good,” Castiel groans and leaves a couple kisses on his neck before moving back to his mouth. Dean is distracted momentarily by the sound of his new name. It feels wrong to be kissing someone and hear a name that doesn’t belong to him. He wants to tell Cas his real name, but before he can there’s a delicate cough from the other side of the room. The two of them immediately break apart and look over to see Benny standing in the doorway with raised eyebrows.

“I should go do my shopping,” Dean says breathlessly. He races out the door as quickly as he can, and Benny gives him a wry smile as he passes by.

Castiel kissed him. The mysterious driver he’s become infatuated with over the past few weeks actually kissed him. It’s forbidden and wrong, but Dean can’t stop himself from wanting to do it again.

~*~

“You are going to be in so much trouble, brother,” Benny whistles.

Castiel grimaces. “I didn’t intend for this to happen.”

“That doesn’t matter,” Benny says, a bit more seriously this time. “If anyone finds out, you could end up on the wall. She’ll get sent to The Empty.”

Castiel runs a hand through his hair, wishing he could pull it out. “I know, I know.” He’s so stupid. He’d meant to talk to Dean about what’s going to happen this afternoon, but instead of doing that he’d ended up kissing the omega. He’d just been taken so by surprise that Ofal is actually a man that he couldn’t stop himself. He already knew he was attracted to the omega, but finding out he’s actually a man makes him even more attracted to him. He never thought he’d actually meet a male omega. He thought they were a myth.

“Don’t take advantage of her,” Benny warns, his tone going harsh. “She’s been through enough as it is. Don’t get her into trouble just because you want to get laid.”

Castiel bristles. “It isn’t like that,” he says, almost using his Alpha voice. Benny takes a step backwards, and Castiel takes a deep breath to calm himself. “Please don’t tell anyone.”

Benny stares at him for a moment, probably trying to decide whether or not he is being genuine. “I won’t, but be careful. You know she has more to risk than you do.”

Castiel nods. He does know. That’s why he shouldn’t have let himself fall this deep in the first place. By this point, he’s not sure if he’ll be able to pull himself back out. Kissing Ofal had been like a dream. He’s been with betas and the occasional Alpha, but he’s never felt the immediate kind of connection he has with Ofal. It’s not just the thrill of doing something against the rules. It’s not the rush of kissing someone new for the first time. It’s something more, and that scares him.

~*~

Dean spent most of the walk to the grocery store thinking about what had just happened. He almost can’t believe he wasn’t dreaming. Ofmarv tried to initiate her usual small talk multiple times, but Dean was even worse company than usual today. After a couple tries, the other omega had given up with an annoyed sigh.

When they finally get to the shops, Ofmarv takes off quickly to the produce section to start doing her shopping. Dean follows a bit behind, looking around the store to see if there are any other omegas here from his training group. It’s been a while since he’s seen any of his friends.

He finally spots Claire standing with Bela in the baked goods section, so he walks over towards them. He can hear Claire talking even though he’s not standing next to them yet. She’s being pretty loud.

“She’s started smiling now,” Claire gushes. She’s probably talking about her pup. Omegas are allowed to stay at their postings to breast feed their pups until they’re ready to be weaned. “And she sticks her tongue out like this.” Claire makes a face. “It’s adorable.”

Dean gets to the bread stand and picks out a loaf to put in his basket. He’s about to warn her that she’s being too loud, but Bela beats him to it. “You shouldn’t talk like that, Ofmichael,” she warns.

Claire stares at Bela for a second before rolling her eyes. “Hater.”

Unfortunately Ofmarv followed him over to the bread stand, so he has to play his role. “Guided by His howl,” he greets the other omegas.

“Guided by His howl,” Bela responds with a smirk. She probably finds it hilarious that he’s paired up with the annoying omega. “Did you see?”

“See what?” He asks.

Bela looks over her shoulder towards the produce section. “She’s back.” Dean follows her gaze and freezes when he sees Jo shopping by herself. She’s wearing her usual omega uniform, so that means she must’ve been posted to a new house. She probably felt them staring at her, because she looks up at them for a second before going back to her shopping. From that short glance, Dean can tell that she’s changed. Her eyes look haunted.

Dean walks over towards her, ignoring his shopping partner when she tries to grab his cloak. “Blessed be the womb,” he says quietly.

“May the Great Alpha make me fruitful,” Jo responds in a monotone.

“Ofmarv—”

“Ofrichard,” she interrupts him. Of course, she has a new posting now, so she has a new name.

“Right,” he says. “I’m glad you’re back. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” she answers quickly.

“We were all worried,” Dean says. He knows she was sent to be ‘corrected,’ but he has no idea what that means. Whatever it was probably wasn’t pleasant.

“I said I’m fine,” she says harshly.

“The Guardians took you?” He asks, and she nods. That’s what he’d thought. He doesn’t want to have to push her to answer questions, but he needs to know if Castiel is one of them. Jo said there was a Guardian in his house. That means it’s either Castiel or Benny. Regardless of who it is, he’s fucked. Either he kissed a Guardian, or he was caught kissing someone by a Guardian. When he gets back home there will probably be a black van there waiting to take him to The Empty.

“Castiel, our driver, is he one of them?” Dean asks. “Is there anything you can tell me?”

“I don’t know,” Jo answers.

“I thought you said there’s a Guardian in my house…”

“I don’t know anything anymore,” Jo explains. “After what happened, I’m too dangerous to be a part of it.”

“A part of what?” Dean asks. Is this the mysterious ‘us’ she’d mentioned before?

“The Letters,” she says quietly.

“Letters? What letters?”

Dean feels a hand on his arm, pulling him away. “There you are, Ofal!” It’s his shopping partner. “Hiding away in the vegetables.” She pulls him away from Jo, and he can’t help rolling his eyes. She must feel threatened by Jo since she was the original Ofmarv.

They pay for their food with their coupons and then begin the walk home in silence. When they get to the wall where the bodies are hung up, Ofmarv stops and turns around to face him. “Don’t do that again.”

“What do you mean?” Dean asks, even though he knows exactly what she’s talking about.

“I mean your friend Ofrichard. I’m not going to let you fuck this up for me.”

Dean scoffs, “This isn’t already fucked up?”

Ofmarv smirks. “You’re cute. You probably had a house in the suburbs with a big, strong Alpha to protect you and your pup. You’d make him dinner when he got home from work and then you’d curl up together to watch Netflix all night.”

Dean’s face hardens. “You don’t know anything about me.”

“I used to get knotted by Alphas in the alley so I could have enough money to pay for my next fix,” she says harshly. “I’m clean now! I have a warm bed to sleep in every night and have people who are nice to me.” Dean rolls his eyes. “Yeah, my household is _nice!_ Whatever happened to Ofrichard isn’t going to happen to me. Do you understand?”

“Mhmm,” Dean replies. Maybe he judged her too harshly before. She’s obviously not brainwashed. She’s just doing what they’re all doing: playing a role and trying to make the best out of things.

When he gets back to the house, Dean immediately walks towards the kitchen to put away the groceries. Before he can head up the stairs to his bedroom, he’s interrupted by Mistress Abbadon.

“Ofal?”

He stops with his hand on the railing. “Yes, Mrs. Rolston?”

“Can you help me out in the garden for a bit?” She asks.

He knows he doesn’t really have a choice. It’s not a question, it’s yet another order. “Yes, Mrs. Rolston.” He follows her outside to the garden where she keeps the roses. Her other plants are in the greenhouse to the side of the driveway.

She shows him how to prune the rose bushes, and then they both work in complete silence. The longer she goes without saying anything, the more Dean starts to freak out. She must’ve found out about the poker games. Or maybe Benny told her about what he’d seen in the kitchen earlier. Either way, he loses a hand.

Maybe she’s just keeping him distracted until the black van arrives. Abbadon leans over and snips a few more dead pieces from the bush with her shears. Dean wonders for a moment how hard he’d have to push down on her neck with those shears before seeing blood. He shakes his head to clear it.

“Nothing yet?” She asks, breaking the silence.

She must be referring to the rutting the other night. It’s only been a couple days, but Dean is pretty sure he’s not pregnant. “Not yet.”

“That’s bad luck,” Abbadon says quietly. “This is your second posting. Your time is running out here.” Dean stares steadily at her. Does she think he doesn’t know this? Either he gets pregnant soon or he’s going to be cleaning up toxic waste in The Empty until he dies. “Maybe he can’t…” Her voice is barely more than a whisper.

“What?”

“The Commander,” she hisses. “Maybe he can’t get you pregnant.” Dean looks down at the rose bush and stays quiet. He’s been wondering the same thing ever since his doctor’s visit. “I was thinking we could try another way.”

“What do you mean?” Dean asks, looking up at her. Her eyes look desperate. He hadn’t realized up to this point just how much Abbadon wants a baby. Apparently enough to try and break the law to get one.

“I meant with another man,” she says quietly.

“It’s forbidden,” Dean reminds her.

“I know, but I’m sure you’ve heard rumors about omegas doing illegal things to get pregnant.”

Dean nods. “I have heard rumors about omegas sleeping with doctors to get pregnant.”

Abbadon clips a few more dead pieces off of the bush. “Yes, some omegas do it that way, but it should be with someone we trust.” Dean doesn’t respond. Trust doesn’t exist here. Not for omegas, anyways. “I was thinking of Castiel.”

Dean pales. “Castiel?”

“He’s very loyal, and he’s been with us for a long time,” she explains. “We can trust him.” For a second, it looks like she’s waiting for him to agree, but when he doesn’t, she continues. “He’s already said yes.”

Dean feels like he can’t breathe. Abbadon wants Castiel to breed him? Castiel is hot, and Dean would be lying if he said he didn’t want to get knotted by him, but not like this. Why hadn’t Castiel warned him about this? Why did he kiss him instead of warning him that he’d be forced to have sex with him later?

Dean feels like he should be pissed, but he’s mostly just hurt. He can’t help but feel like Castiel took advantage of him a little bit. He looks up at Abbadon and sees that she’s still waiting for his reply. He sighs. It’s not like he has a choice. “Alright,” he whispers.

“This afternoon then,” Abbadon says, standing up and grabbing the dead trimmings to throw away. “We might as well strike while the iron is hot.” She leaves without saying another word, giving Dean no choice but to follow.

~*~

Castiel waits for a knock on the door. It feels like his heart is in his stomach right now he’s so nervous. He’d be lying if he said he hasn’t fantasized about knotting Ofal, but he didn’t want it to happen like this. He took some time to prep himself because with his nerves the way they are, he’s worried he wouldn’t be able to get it up once Ofal gets here. He hopes Ofal does the same thing. His goal is to make this as quick and painless as possible.

When the knock on the door finally comes, Castiel opens it quickly and heads over to the other side of the loft where his bed is. Mistress Abbadon looks a bit nervous, and Ofal just looks closed off. “I’ll wait over here,” Mistress Abbadon says quietly. She needs to stay to make sure they actually go through with this, but he’s glad she’s going to sit at the other end of the room instead of watching them up close.

Ofal starts to undress, but Castiel stops him. “You don’t have to,” he whispers. “Just your underclothes.” He wants to try and make this as easy as possible. He feels horrible that he has to do this. As Benny had said earlier, Ofal’s been through so much already. “Are you prepped?”

Ofal doesn’t say anything, but he nods and removes his boxers. Castiel can smell a hint of slick, and he has to control his urge to immediately sink into the omega’s warm hole. Now is not the time to delve into his lifelong fantasies about male omegas. Ofal is a person. A person who he’d begun to consider a friend and possibly something more if he hasn’t managed to screw that up for good.

He pulls his hardened cock out of his pants when Ofal gets up on all fours on his bed. He gently pulls Ofal’s dress up just enough to see what he’s doing. He’s trying to help Ofal maintain as much of his dignity as he can given the situation. He can’t help the small grunt of pleasure he releases when he sinks into the omega’s slick heat. It’s unlike anything he’s ever felt before.

He looks down at the omega and sees that his head is turned to the side and he’s staring into space. Castiel wonders if this is what he does during Alistair’s rutting day, and he cringes. Some part of his brain had been hoping this would be different, but of course it’s not. Castiel is basically raping him right now. He didn’t have much of a choice in the situation, but he still has more power and agency than Ofal does.

He grips onto the omega’s bony hips and thrusts into him a bit more forcefully. Ofal makes a sound in his throat that’s almost like a moan, but it’s like he cut it off before it could come out. Castiel closes his eyes so he doesn’t have to look at Ofal spread out underneath him. It’s too tempting of a sight. It’s taking every ounce of self-control he has not to scent him or mark up his neck.

He barely hears Ofal whisper, “Cas,” before his knot pops, catching on the omega’s tight rim. With one more thrust, he pushes inside. Ofal grimaces slightly at the extra intrusion, but then collapses down onto the bed, essentially pulling Castiel down with him since they’re tied together.

He hears Mrs. Rolston quietly leave the loft, closing the door behind her. Now that she’s gone, Castiel bends down and places a few gentle kisses on the back of Ofal’s neck. He groans when he feels another load pump into the omega.

“Are you okay?” He asks gently. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“I’m fine,” Ofal says quietly, still staring blankly towards the far wall.

He doesn’t look fine. “Ofal…”

“Please,” the omega closes his eyes. “I don’t want to talk right now.”

Those words feel like an ice pick to the heart, but Castiel respects the omega’s wishes. When his knot goes down a few minutes later, Ofal quickly fixes his clothes and leaves the loft without looking back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Dean :( 
> 
> Your comments always make me smile!


	10. Town Square Market

Jo sits on the front porch of the new estate where she’s posted. This family is much nicer than her previous one, but she’s still a prisoner. She’s still a forced sex-slave. Nothing has really changed since she was gone. She shudders when she remembers what they did to her in the re-training center. She can’t think about it.

They told her she’d be given one last chance with a family, but if this one doesn’t work out, they’re going to send her to The Empty. At this point she doesn’t know which option is worse. She knows there’s no getting out of here. She used to have hope that she’d be able to escape to Canada with the help of The Letters, but now they want nothing to do with her. She’s a liability.

She sighs and closes her eyes, enjoying the feeling of the sun on her skin. These simple pleasures are all she has left. She hears the front door of the house open and then close. Then she hears someone’s footsteps approaching her. They’re too quiet to be her new Alpha’s. That means it’s probably the wife.

She feels a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Blessed be the womb,” Mistress Roman says gently.

“May the Great Alpha make me fruitful,” Jo replies in monotone.

The wife sits down next to her on the step and is silent for a few moments. Jo continues looking out across the street. Her new posting is a few houses down from the first house she stayed at, but she can just make out Dean’s house from here. She watches their driver, Castiel, as he washes Commander Rolston’s car. He’s out there a lot. Jo wonders what sorts of things he overhears as omegas and betas pass by on the sidewalk.

“You know,” Mistress Roman says quietly, breaking the silence. “I’m not feeling too well today. Maybe we can postpone the rutting for another month. How does that sound?”

“You can’t be sick every month,” Jo says quietly.

The wife sighs, “No, I can’t.” She heads back inside, leaving Jo out on the porch. She appreciates what Mistress Roman is trying to do, but it doesn’t help. She’s still going to be raped again. It’s not a matter of _if_ , it’s _when_.

~*~

Dean spends the evening practicing his knitting. The Aunts wanted the omegas to have other household skills besides pumping out pups, but Dean is terrible at it. He and Mistress Abbadon are working on making baby clothes, assuming he can ever manage to get pregnant. They’ve been working for a while in silence before Commander Alistair comes in. He’s on his way to his office, but he must’ve stopped by since he saw them in here. He speaks quietly to his wife for a moment, and Dean pretends not to notice him. He’s trying to figure out where he fucked up the stitch pattern when he feels a hand on his neck. He stiffens when he feels the Commander massage his neck right where his mating bite would go if he were ever to get mated.

Dean quickly glances over towards Mistress Abbadon to see if she notices what’s going on, but thankfully she’s too wrapped up in her knitting. With one final squeeze Alistair leaves the room and heads over towards his office. Dean silently excuses himself and goes up to his room so he can calm down.

Once the panic has passed, he gets more and more pissed. How dare Alistair touch him like that right in front of his wife! He knows the penalties for omegas and Alphas having affairs. Dean waits until he’s sure Abbadon will have gone up to her room to go downstairs to the Alpha’s office. He knocks on the door briskly, trying to keep his anger under control.

The Commander opens the door with a smile on his face. “This is a surprise!” He walks over towards his desk, letting Dean close the door himself. “Would you like a drink? Or a game?”

“Never do that again!” Dean says harshly once he’s inside the office and the door is closed.

“Do what?” Alistair feigns confusion.

“Touch me like that!” Dean yells. “When she’s there.”

“I didn’t mind it,” Alistair sneers, “And I don’t think you did either. Besides, I just touched your neck.”

“It doesn’t matter!” Dean hisses. “What if she saw you? She could have me sent to The Empty or worse, and you know that!”

Alistair’s smile drops, and he actually looks a bit apologetic. “I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.” He starts to pour himself a drink. There’s another glass there for Dean, but he thinks he’s too angry still to stick around and flirt with the Commander over cards tonight. He starts walking towards the door when Alistair speaks up again. “I just find this whole arrangement so impersonal.”

Dean stops mid-step and turns around. “You think?” The idea that the Alpha is calling the ritualistic rape of omegas once a month impersonal borders on hilarious.

Alistair sighs. “I want to know you, Ofal,” he says so quietly that Dean wonders if he misheard him. “Are you sure you wouldn’t like a drink?”

“No, thank you,” Dean says. He just wants to go to sleep.

“How about a read then?” Alistair asks, holding up a different magazine. Dean sighs. He doesn’t want to be here, but he also doesn’t want to risk pissing the Commander off. He needs to stay on good terms with him. He sits down in the chair opposite the desk while Alistair flips through the magazine. “You miss this don’t you?” He’s referring to the old days before the rebellion. Of course, Dean misses those days. Things weren’t great, but at least he wasn’t a slave. “Lists of made-up problems,” Alistair sighs. “Nobody was ever smart enough, rich enough, attractive enough…”

“We had choices back then,” Dean says through his teeth.

“Now you have respect and protection,” Alistair retorts. Dean almost laughs. What reality is he living in where he’d call how omegas are treated _respect_? “You can fulfill your biological destinies in peace.”

“Biological destiny?” Dean scoffs.

“Having pups,” Alistair explains as if it’s obvious. “What else is there to live for?”

Dean isn’t sure at this point, but he’d hope there’s something more to live for. He finds himself answering, “Love,” even though he’s never been in love before. There’s the possibility of it though. Something is building between him and Castiel, and he’s not sure if it’ll turn into love, but the prospect of there being something more to his life than shopping and rape is keeping him going.

“Love,” Alistair laughs as if Dean’s a naïve child. “Love was never anything more than lust.” He waves the magazine around as if that’s proof.

“That might be true for you, but not for me,” Dean replies quietly, but firmly. He hasn’t been in love before, but he still knows what love is. There’s an ache in the center of his chest that’s always there but burns stronger whenever he thinks about Sam and Krissy and Charlie. He’ll take the pain because it means he still remembers them. In a world that’s designed to strip everything away from people like him, he only has those memories to hold on to.

Alistair closes the magazine and slams it onto the desk. “What did you say?” He asks angrily. _Shit, there goes Dean’s stupid mouth again._

“Nothing,” he looks down.

The Commander moves around the desk so he’s standing in front of him. “Do you remember Ofmarv who used to live across the street?” _Where is this going?_ “She had sexual urges that led her to do unnatural things, though I’m sure to her it felt like love. Usually in these cases the punishment is death, but since she’s an omega we decided to offer her another chance.”

Dean feels himself pale. “What did you do to her?”

“We helped her,” Alistair says with a sneer. “We had a doctor remove the problem.”

A wave of nausea passes through Dean as he realizes what the Alpha is saying. They performed female genital mutilation on Jo. That’s what they’d meant when they said they were correcting her. He shudders and feels tears threatening to spill over. He needs to get out of here.

“Excuse me,” Dean says and stands up, all but running towards the door. Alistair doesn’t say anything else so he leaves the office quickly and heads towards his room. He realizes he isn’t going to make it all the way upstairs, so he runs to the kitchen and vomits up his supper in the sink. His knuckles are white from where he’s gripping the edge of the counter as he tries to calm himself down.

“Are you sick?” Castiel asks from the doorway. Why does he have to be everywhere, all the time? Dean coughs and wipes up his mouth on a towel. He turns to look at the driver who is standing awkwardly by the door like he’s unsure if he should come help or stay where he is.

“What are you doing here?” Dean asks. He should be up in his loft for the evening. Castiel doesn’t answer, so Dean repeats the question. “What are you doing here?”

“I was looking for some food,” Castiel says, but he’s a terrible liar.

“Are you spying on me?” Dean asks. Castiel steps into the room slowly but doesn’t say anything. Dean decides to finally ask the question that’s been on his mind ever since Jo first started talking to him. “Are you a Guardian?”

Castiel’s face doesn’t reveal anything. “You should go to bed,” he says.

“Do you know what they did to Ofmarv?” Dean asks, stepping towards the Alpha. Castiel nods and looks towards the ground. He actually seems upset. “Do you know because you’re one of them?”

“You shouldn’t be down here,” Castiel says instead of answering.

Dean’s tears finally spill over. He’s tired of everyone telling him what to do. “Don’t tell me where to go.”

“You need to listen to me,” Castiel continues. “It’s not safe.”

“Please, don’t tell me what to do,” Dean whispers. “Not you.”

Castiel looks like he’s about to try and reach out towards him, but he must think better of it. Dean can’t decide whether or not he would’ve welcomed the touch. “I couldn’t say no when Mrs. Rolston asked me,” Castiel says softly. Dean nods. He understands how things work around here, but that doesn’t mean he’s happy Castiel had sex with him without warning him about what would happen first. “I’m really sorry.” Dean keeps nodding, but he doesn’t look up. He feels Castiel’s strong hand lifting his chin up to force him to look at him. “I’m sorry, Ofal.” He wipes away Dean’s tears with his thumb, and Dean wants nothing more than to forgive him and let himself be held, but he can’t.

He takes a step back. “Just tell me,” Dean says, his voice edging on anger. “Are you a Guardian?”

Castiel stays silent for a moment and then nods. “Yes.” Dean’s pretty numb to the earth-shattering revelations by this point, but it still hurts more than he thought it would to have it confirmed. Castiel is one of them. The Alpha he’s connecting with more than he’s ever connected with someone before is a member of the secret police. He can’t help the laugh that bursts out of him. The whole thing is so ridiculous. “Now, go to sleep,” Castiel says again. “Before I report you.”

There it is. Dean continues to giggle quietly, and he knows that the laughter mixed with the tears still staining his cheeks must make him look insane, but he can’t stop. He’d told himself not to trust anyone. He’d told himself he _couldn’t_ trust anyone, and yet here he is. Not only had he started trusting Castiel, he’d started falling for him as well. How could he be so stupid? He takes one last look back at the Guardian who hasn’t moved from where he’s leaning against the counter. His face is unreadable, but Dean thinks he sees a bit of sadness there. Maybe it’s just his imagination.

The next morning all of the omegas are sent to go shopping at the Town Square market. The market isn’t around that often and is usually full of the freshest produce and flowers. Whenever it’s here, they make sure to go. Dean walks with the new Ofmarv who still seems a bit angry at him over what happened yesterday. Or maybe she’s just angry in general.

Some drivers drop wives off at the market to do some shopping too. Wives don’t normally like to do the daily chores, but they enjoy shopping at the market since it’s more fun than wandering through aisles in a store. The drivers let the wives out of the cars and then pull the cars out of the square to park them further away.

The marketplace is really bustling this morning since this is the first day it’s back. Dean thinks it’s almost like those old traveling carnivals that everyone would get excited about when they’d come to town. Most of the people here are omegas, but there are a decent number of betas and a handful of wives. The only men in the area are the Guardians making sure nobody gets too rowdy in the produce section.

Dean spots Jo immediately when he gets to the stalls, but he knows he can’t walk right over to her. Ofmarv has eyes like a hawk, and he doesn’t want to know what might happen if he tries to pull the same stunt he did yesterday. He walks over towards Meg who is another omega he knew from the training center. They weren’t super close, but in a fucked-up way it’s kind of like high school. They may not have gotten along in school, but once they graduate, they’re a familiar face.

“Those peanut butter cookies look delicious,” Dean says, pointing towards a bakery stall on the other side of the market from where Jo is standing.

Meg rolls her eyes under her bonnet. “I’m allergic to peanuts.”

Dean stares intensely at her, willing for her to understand him. “I’m pretty sure my shopping partner would like them.” Meg sighs dramatically but takes Ofmarv over towards the cookie display. That gets her out of Dean’s way for a couple minutes at least so he can go talk to Jo.

He quickly walks over towards her. “Hi,” he says quietly. She doesn’t reply, she just nods at him in greeting. Her eyes look dead, and now he understands why. “I know what they did to you,” he whispers. “I’m so sorry.”

“Ofal, you should come see these cookies!” Ofmarv calls from across the market. Shit, she must’ve seen him talking to Jo already. That means he doesn’t have much time.

“I’ll be right there,” he calls back.

Jo grabs his hand. “The Letters can’t use me anymore, but you can help them,” she whispers.

“Who are they?” Dean asks.

“They’re people who are fighting back,” Jo says in a rush. “Find them.”

“How do I find them?” Dean asks. Before he can get a response, he feels his cloak being tugged from behind. It’s Ofmarv.

“You’re going to come with me to look at the cookies,” she all but growls, forcibly pulling him away from Jo. Dean understands on some level why she feels so threatened, but it is a bit ridiculous. He walks with her towards the other end of the market, still thinking about what Jo had said. He has no idea who The Letters are or how to find them, but he’ll have to figure out some other way to talk to Jo when he’s not with his shopping partner. He’s interrupted from his thoughts by the sound of Guardians yelling at someone. When he turns towards the noise, he sees Jo sprinting towards one of the idling cars that the drivers were using to drop wives off.

Jo gets into the car, and she must lock the door because the Guardians can’t get in from the outside. She immediately steps on the gas and starts racing around the market. People have to duck into stalls and jump out of the way to avoid being hit. The Guardians quickly move in with vans to keep her from being able to escape the Town Square. Once she’s boxed in, she stops the car and the Guardians start pounding on the window, yelling at her to unlock the car and step out of the vehicle.

She looks over towards Dean, and the two of them make eye contact. Dean knows she’s asking for his permission. She’s found her way out. It’s different from the way Charlie went, but it’s likely to have the same ending. He smiles and nods slightly towards her just as he did when Charlie was stepping onto that train. Jo returns his smile, and then steps on the gas again, barreling right over one of the Guardians who was trying to force her out of the car. The impact kills the Guardian immediately, spraying blood out across the street. The omegas and betas watching the scene play out all gasp simultaneously.

The Guardians must’ve had time to set up a spike strip on the road, because when Jo runs over it, the tires immediately pop. When the car finally stops, the Guardians rush it, breaking out the window, unlocking the door, and forcing Jo out of it. They drag her towards a black van and shove her inside.

Dean’s chest constricts when he realizes this is probably the last time he’ll ever see Jo. The punishment for killing a Guardian would surely be death. Either that or they’ll send her to The Empty.

Ofmarv grabs onto his arm. “We have to get out of here NOW!” She hisses. “It’s not safe.” The rest of the crowd is also quickly dispersing. Nobody wants the Guardians to think this was a planned insurrection or anything more than one omega acting out.

The two of them walk back to their houses in silence. Dean just feels numb. He understands why Jo did what she did. She knows her wife and son are safe in Canada. She knows there’s no way she’ll ever escape this place. She didn’t want to have to play this game anymore. Dean doesn’t have that option. His brother is dead, and his daughter is still here somewhere. There’s nothing for him out there while Krissy is in here.

When they get to Dean’s house, Ofmarv stops and puts her hands on each of his shoulders. Looking him deep in the eyes, she says, “It’s going to be alright. We’ll watch out for each other.” Dean is tempted to make a snarky comment, but he knows this is Ofmarv’s way of trying to reach out to him. Even though she didn’t like Jo, she knew that the two of them were friends. Dean just nods, and with a smile, she walks across the street and back to her house.

As he’s about to open the wrought iron gate to the driveway, three black Guardian vans speed past on the street. He wonders if they’re heading to clean up the mess at the market or if something else happened. He can’t help the image that comes into his head of Castiel driving one of those cars. Dean wants to believe he’s different than the rest of them. Maybe he’s doing what he has to do to survive the same way Dean is. Maybe he’s trying to dismantle the system from the inside.

When he steps inside the house, he’s immediately greeted by Abbadon. She actually looks worried. She must’ve heard about the incident at the market somehow. “I heard there was a problem at the market,” she starts. That’s the biggest understatement ever. “Are you alright?”

Dean is so confused by Abbadon. One day she’s hand-picking flowers for him, the next she locks him in his room for weeks, and now she’s asking how he’s doing as if she actually cares. “I’m fine,” he says.

“Good,” Abbadon nods. “Some omegas can’t handle the requirements that come with their gender designation. They can’t do what needs to be done to save this nation. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

“Yes, Mrs. Rolston.”

“You’re smart,” she says, looking down. “I know you’re strong enough to handle this.” She walks back towards the direction of the living room, and Dean takes that to mean their conversation is over.

Later that evening, he sits in his closet staring at the carving on the wall. It’s become his go-to spot when he needs to think. Tonight he thinks about Jo. Even though she got taken away in the van, the Guardians hadn’t managed to take everything from her. She still had a spark in her eyes, something inside her that they couldn’t put out. She looked invincible.

Dean decides it’s time for him to take a page out of Jo’s and Charlie’s books. It’s time to stop waiting. It’s time to _do_.

He gets up and walks quietly down the back stairs. It’s dark outside now, so he’s sure the rest of the house is asleep. He just hopes Castiel is still awake. He steps outside into the courtyard and shivers a bit. He’s unsure if it’s because of the cool night air or nerves. He keeps placing one foot in front of the other and walks towards the driver’s apartment. There’s nothing to be nervous about. He wants this, and he knows in his heart that Castiel does too.

He climbs the stairs up to the loft above the garage and knocks raptly on the door. Castiel opens it immediately. He’s wearing a plain t-shirt and sweatpants. This is the first time Dean’s seen him in anything other than his usual uniform. He looks surprised, but Dean doesn’t wait for him to say anything. He steps into the apartment and closes the door behind himself.

Without breaking eye-contact with the Alpha, he reaches up slowly to pull off his bonnet, letting Castiel see his hair for the first time. Then he unzips his dress and lets it fall to the floor. By this point, Castiel must understand what’s happening. His pupils dilate, and Dean can see the smallest hint of a smile on his face.

Now that he just has his plain boxers on, he grabs the hem of Castiel’s shirt and pulls it carefully over his head. He’s wearing some sort of necklace that he’d had hidden under his shirt. Dean gently pulls that over his head as well. He can see Castiel’s hands twitch by his side as if he’s trying to keep himself from touching Dean. Next he pulls on the elastic of Castiel’s sweatpants to loosen them. He runs his fingers along the inside of the waistband, and the Alpha’s breath hitches as he feels Dean’s fingers on his skin.

Dean dips his hands further under the back of Castiel’s pants and under his boxers too, grabbing a little feel of that fine ass he’s been trying to keep his eyes off of for weeks. Castiel gasps again, and Dean is already obsessed with all of the noises he’s making. Most of the time, Alphas try to act unfazed and completely in control, but it’s almost like Castiel wants him to take charge.

Dean pushes down the Alpha’s pants and sees that he’s already half-hard, and his cock is huge. There’s definitely no mistaking him for a beta now! Dean has no idea how that thing fit inside him earlier. He looks back up at the Alpha and sees him smirking a bit. He must’ve noticed Dean’s momentary shock. He shoves him lightly back towards the bed and takes a few steps forward as well.

  
Castiel grabs Dean’s hand before he can pull down his boxers. “Wait, shouldn’t we talk?”

The last thing he wants to do right now is talk. Instead, he leans forward and captures Castiel’s lips in a fierce kiss. He walks them back towards the bed until Castiel’s legs hit the back of it. The Alpha grabs Dean by the waist, lifts him up, and spins them around before pushing him back onto the bed.

“Damn, Cas, you’ve been holding out on me,” Dean pants, ridiculously turned on by that show of strength. The Alpha climbs onto the bed in between his legs and runs his hands reverently over his thighs. The gentle way he’s touching him is at odds with the rough way he’d handled him just a second ago. Dean can’t decide which he likes better.

Castiel keeps his eyes on Dean while he licks a long stripe up his rapidly filling cock. Dean throws his head back against the pillow and barely stifles a moan. The Alpha pulls back but continues slowly jacking him off to full hardness. “You don’t have to be quiet or act like anything you’re not with me,” he says. “You can be yourself.”

Part of his brain tries to remind him that Castiel is a Guardian. He’s part of the secret police. Out of everyone in this house, Cas is probably the person he should trust the least. The other side of his brain tells him that Cas has had multiple chances to report multiple people in this house, and he hasn’t. He’s not like other Guardians.

Castiel swallows down Dean’s dick to the root, and this time he can’t help the moan that comes out of him. The sight of an Alpha sucking off an omega is virtually unheard of, and it may be the hottest thing Dean’s ever seen. “Fuck, Cas,” he groans in his real voice. Cas’s bobbing stops momentarily when he moans, sending vibrations that Dean feels all the way in his toes. He’d forgotten that Cas hasn’t heard his real voice yet. “Fuck me, Cas,” he grunts. “I need you to fuck me.” He’s felt slick leaking out of him almost since he stepped in the door, so he knows he’s ready. He pulls his knees up to his chest, exposing his glistening hole.

“Fucking hell,” Cas says, voice wrecked. The Alpha grabs onto his hips for leverage and slowly thrusts in with one smooth motion. Both of them sigh when they’re fully joined together. Castiel waits a moment to give him time to adjust to his size. When he finally starts to move, Dean sees stars. He’s never had sex that felt this intense. It makes sense since his only previous experiences were his rape and rutting days with Alistair.

Castiel must be able to see something on his face, because he leans over him and looks directly in his eyes. The Alpha is obviously incredibly aroused, but he’s still fully in control of himself. “Stay with me,” he says before kissing him again. As their tongues gently explore each other, Dean feels those awful memories recede to the background.

“I need to scent you,” Dean moans. Castiel probably applies his blockers in the morning before starting the day, so they should mostly be worn off by this point. He licks up the Alpha’s neck towards his scent gland. The slightly bitter taste of the blockers is disgusting, but after a moment Dean finally smells it. Castiel smells like honey, campfire, and safety. He inhales greedily, and then wraps his legs around Cas’s waist so he has the leverage to flip them over.

“Fuck, Ofal,” Cas groans. For whatever reason, it seems like the Alpha enjoys it when Dean takes control or acts in ways that omegas aren’t supposed to act. He’ll keep that in mind for later. Right now he focuses on grinding his hips in circles to tease him. He smirks a bit when he sees the frustration on Cas’s face.

He starts riding Cas with everything he’s got, groaning each time the Alpha’s cock hits his prostate. He can tell that they’re both getting close by how their breathing is picking up. He almost loses it when he feels a hand grab his dick and start jacking him off in rhythm.

“Knot me, Cas,” he says forcibly. The Alpha’s eyes pinch closed as his knot pops inside and then they’re both coming.

Dean falls forward onto Cas’s chest, and he closes his eyes when he feels those strong hands gently caressing the skin of his back. He stiffens momentarily when Cas feels the raised edges of the scars on his back. He’s so sated that he’d forgotten about them. He looks up and sees the confusion on Cas’s face.

“Purgatory,” Dean explains, and Cas’s face immediately grows angry.

“Why did they do this to you?” He asks with barely contained fury.

Dean sighs. He can’t believe someone who works for the Guardians has no idea about what actually goes on in those centers. “I don’t want to talk about that right now,” he says quietly. “Can we just be here?”

The Alpha nods and pulls Dean more tightly against his chest. They lay together in silence, and Dean inhales their combined scents and listens to the steady beat of Castiel’s heart. Just for a moment he lets himself believe that maybe this could work out. Maybe they could be a real couple: escape to Canada, open up a charming bed and breakfast, and leave all of this horror behind. It’s a ridiculous daydream, and it’ll never happen, but there’s nothing wrong with a little fantasy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is it getting hot in here? *fans self*


End file.
